Privacy Policy for Carbon Tracker

Last Updated: September 11, 2026

Effective Date: September 11, 2026

1. Introduction

Welcome to Carbon Tracker ("we," "our," or "us"), operated by ARI Software Lab (contact: 

arisoftwarelab@gmail.com).

 Carbon Tracker is a point-of-purchase mobile application designed to help consumers assess the environmental impact, carbon footprint, and sustainability of grocery products by scanning retail barcodes.

We believe that privacy is a fundamental human right. Carbon Tracker is built on a privacy-by-design and local-first architecture. We do not track your identity, we do not require account creation, and we do not sell or monetize personal user data.

This Privacy Policy explains what information is processed when you use our mobile application (the "App") and our related services, how that information is handled, and your rights under the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the UK Data Protection Act, the EU Directive on Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition (EU 2024/825), and international privacy frameworks.

2. Information We Do NOT Collect

Unlike conventional consumer apps, Carbon Tracker minimizes data collection to the greatest extent possible:

No Personal Identification: We do not collect names, email addresses, physical addresses, telephone numbers, or government IDs.

No Account Registration: You can use 100% of the scanning and footprint calculation features without creating an account or providing credentials.

No GPS or Precise Location Tracking: We do not track, access, or log your GPS coordinates.

No Third-Party Advertising Trackers: We do not use third-party ad networks (e.g., Google AdMob, Meta Audience Network), trackers, or data brokers.

No Biometric Data: We do not collect or process facial recognition or biometric information.

3. Information We Process & Device Permissions

To deliver core app functionality, Carbon Tracker accesses limited device capabilities and processes technical data as follows:

A. Camera Permission (android.permission.CAMERA)

Purpose: To scan standard retail barcodes (EAN-8, EAN-13, UPC-A, UPC-E, and QR codes) on product packaging.

How It Works: Video frames are analyzed in real time on your device using on-device computer vision libraries (MobileScanner / ML Kit).

Privacy Guarantee: Camera frames and images are never recorded, stored, saved to your photo library, or transmitted to any remote server. Camera processing occurs entirely in volatile device memory.

B. Product Barcode Lookups (Internet Access)

Purpose: To fetch product names, life-cycle carbon footprint estimates (ADEME Agribalyse), ingredients, and packaging recyclability data.

How It Works: When a barcode is scanned or entered manually, the numeric barcode (e.g., 7394376616532) is sent via secure HTTPS to the public Open Food Facts API (world.openfoodfacts.org).

Privacy Guarantee: These requests do not contain personal identifiers, device serial numbers, or user profile information.

C. Map Tiles

Purpose: To display ingredient supply chain origin maps and calculate cumulative food transportation miles.

How It Works: Map tiles are downloaded over HTTPS from standard OpenStreetMap tile servers (tile.openstreetmap.org).

Privacy Guarantee: No personal location data is sent to map tile providers. Only the coordinates of ingredient source countries are rendered.

4. Local On-Device Data Storage

All user activity and personalization data in Carbon Tracker is stored locally on your device using Android SharedPreferences (or iOS sandbox storage):

Scan History: List of products you have scanned, timestamps, eco-grades, and calculated carbon footprints.

Dietary & Eco Preferences: Your selected preferences (e.g., Vegan/Plant-Based priority, Palm Oil deforestation warnings, EU Organic preference).

Localization: Your selected supermarket country (e.g., Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, UK) and language.

Offline Product Cache: Locally cached product information to enable instant scanning in supermarket basements with weak cellular reception.

Your Control: You can permanently delete this local data at any time directly within the app:

Go to Scan History → tap Clear to wipe all scanned products.

Go to Settings → tap Clear Cached Barcodes to purge the offline cache.

Uninstalling the application immediately and irreversibly deletes all stored local data.

5. Third-Party Services & Open Data Sources

Carbon Tracker interacts with the following external services:

Service Provider Purpose Data Transferred Privacy Policy

Open Food Facts Open Food Facts Association (France) Open-source food database & Agribalyse 3.1.1 eco-scores Scanned product barcode string via HTTPS Open Food Facts Privacy Policy

OpenStreetMap OpenStreetMap Foundation (UK) Open-source map tiles for ingredient origins Standard HTTP request for map tile image coordinates OSMF Privacy Policy

Google Play Billing Google LLC Processing optional Pro subscriptions Transaction receipt tokens managed by Google Play (no payment card details are accessible to us) Google Privacy Policy

6. Subscriptions & Payment Processing

If you purchase a Carbon Tracker Pro subscription:

Payments and renewals are processed directly by Google Play (Android) or Apple App Store (iOS) using your platform account.

Carbon Tracker never collects, sees, or stores your credit card numbers, bank account numbers, or billing addresses.

Your subscription status is verified using anonymous cryptographic transaction receipts provided by the app store.

7. Compliance with EU Directive 2024/825 & Scientific Integrity

Carbon Tracker complies with the EU Directive on Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition (EU 2024/825) regarding substantiated environmental claims:

Carbon footprints and Eco-Score ratings (A through E) are derived from independent, peer-reviewed Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodologies established by ADEME (the French Agency for Ecological Transition) and the Agribalyse 3.1.1 dataset.

Carbon Tracker does not accept paid placements, manufacturer sponsorships, or advertising that alters environmental ratings or greener alternative recommendations.

8. Children's Privacy

Carbon Tracker does not address children under the age of 13 (or under 16 in certain EU member states). We do not knowingly collect or solicit personal data from children. Because the application does not collect personal data from any user, no child data is ever captured, stored, or processed.

9. Your Rights Under GDPR (EU & UK Users)

If you are a resident of the European Economic Area (EEA) or the United Kingdom, you hold statutory rights under the GDPR:

Right of Access & Portability: You can export your scan records to a portable CSV file at any time via the Impact Dashboard ("Export CSV").

Right to Erasure (Right to be Forgotten): You can delete all your records instantly using the in-app "Clear" buttons or by deleting the app.

Right to Rectification: You can adjust all preferences and settings at any time in the Settings tab.

Right to Lodge a Complaint: You have the right to contact your national Data Protection Authority (e.g., BfDI in Germany, AP in the Netherlands, IMY in Sweden, ICO in the UK) if you have concerns regarding data processing.

10. Data Security

Although Carbon Tracker does not maintain central user databases or remote user accounts, all network traffic (such as barcode lookups and map tile fetches) is encrypted using industry-standard TLS 1.3 / HTTPS protocols to protect against eavesdropping or man-in-the-middle attacks on public supermarket Wi-Fi networks.

11. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or regulatory obligations. Any updates will be posted on this page with an updated "Last Updated" date. Continued use of the app following notice of updates constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.

12. Contact Us & Legal Inquiries

If you have questions, feedback, or legal inquiries regarding this Privacy Policy or our privacy practices, please contact our Data Protection representative:

ARI Software Lab

Product: Carbon Tracker — Carbon Footprint Scanner

Email: arisoftwarelab@gmail.com