OBD Vault — Privacy Policy

1. Data Controller

The Data Controller responsible for the processing of your personal data under global privacy frameworks (including EU/UK GDPR, California CCPA/CPRA, and international data protection laws) is:

2. Core Architectural Principles

• Local-First: Vehicle telemetry, OBD-II scan sessions, and Diagnostic Trouble Codes (DTCs) are stored in a local SQLite database inside the operating system's app sandbox on your device.
• Data Sovereignty & No Brokering: We never sell, rent, or trade your personal data, VIN, or vehicle telemetry to data brokers, insurers, or unauthorized third parties.
• Read-Mostly Vehicle Access: The app never issues arbitrary ECU commands. Clearing trouble codes is the only state-altering function and requires explicit confirmation.
• No Autonomous AI Feeding: We never stream diagnostic telemetry to AI models automatically. Access requires explicit user authorization via OAuth 2.1. AI clients cannot change vehicle or diagnostic records; requesting an export creates a temporary download reference that expires automatically.

3. Categories of Data Processed

4. Advertising, Analytics & Service Optimization

To support ongoing development, maintain compatibility across hundreds of vehicle models, and provide a functional free tier, OBD Vault may utilize standard advertising and diagnostic analytics services:

• Advertising & Sponsored Recommendations: Free editions of the application may display contextual advertisements, sponsored auto-parts recommendations (such as verified replacement sensors or DIY tools), or third-party advertising networks (such as Google AdMob). Paid Vault subscribers receive a 100% ad-free experience.
• Application Analytics & Crash Diagnostics: We may collect anonymized performance telemetry, crash logs, and aggregated feature metrics to detect adapter communication issues, improve protocol negotiation, and fix stability regressions.
• User Consent & Privacy Controls: Where required by applicable laws (such as GDPR, CCPA, or Apple's App Tracking Transparency framework), you have the right to consent to or opt out of personalized tracking. Non-personalized advertising and aggregated analytics are provided when opted out.

Cookies on our website: obd-vault.com does not use advertising or analytics cookies. It sets only first-party cookies the site needs to work: a language cookie (landing_lang, kept for one year) that remembers the language you picked in the footer, and a temporary session cookie while you sign in to connect an AI assistant. Neither is used to track you across sites.

Optional email marketing: We send OBD Vault news and promotional offers by email only with your explicit consent and after email verification. Consent is optional and can be withdrawn at any time in account settings or using the unsubscribe link in an email. We record your choice, the consent text version, source and time. Registration, verification and password-reset messages are service communications.

5. Legal Basis for Processing (GDPR Art. 6)

We process your personal data strictly according to lawful grounds established by Article 6 of the GDPR:

• Contractual Necessity (Art. 6(1)(b)): To provide the mobile diagnostic functions, cloud sync across your devices, and user account services.
• Explicit Consent (Art. 6(1)(a)): For connecting external AI assistants (ChatGPT, Claude) through our OAuth 2.1 Model Context Protocol (MCP) server to access vehicle diagnostics and requested exports, and for personalized advertising/tracking identifiers where mandated by law.
• Legitimate Interests (Art. 6(1)(f)): Protecting our API against brute force attacks and abuse, serving non-intrusive contextual ads in free tiers, measuring crash telemetry, and improving software stability.
• Legal Obligation (Art. 6(1)(c)): Retaining transaction and subscription records for mandatory statutory accounting and tax compliance.

6. AI & Model Context Protocol (MCP)

OBD Vault provides an optional connector for AI clients (e.g., ChatGPT) using the open Model Context Protocol (MCP):

• User-Initiated: Connects only when you explicitly log in and authorize the connection via browser OAuth 2.1 with PKCE.
• No Vehicle or Record Changes: AI clients cannot clear fault codes, modify diagnostic records, or send vehicle commands. The export tool can create a temporary download reference when you request an export; it expires automatically.
• Privacy Guard: VIN numbers are masked by default in generic telemetry queries to prevent unnecessary exposure.
• Revocation: You can disconnect and revoke access at any time from your account settings.

7. Sub-processors & Hosting (GDPR Art. 28)

Data processing is conducted using enterprise-grade infrastructure located inside the European Union:

• Hosting & Database: Hetzner Online GmbH (Germany; the production server and database currently run in its Helsinki, Finland data centre) & OVHcloud SAS (France) — ISO 27001 certified, full GDPR Data Processing Agreements in place.
• Transactional Email: Scaleway SAS (France) delivers verification codes, password resets, and marketing email you consented to. It receives your email address.
• App Distribution & Billing: Apple Inc. (iOS App Store) & Google Ireland Limited (Google Play). Payment details are handled entirely by Apple and Google.
• Advertising & Analytics (Free Tiers): Google Ireland Limited / Google LLC (Google Mobile Ads, Firebase Crashlytics / Analytics) for app reliability and ad delivery in free tiers.

8. Data Retention & Right to Erasure (Art. 17 GDPR)

You have full control over your data lifecycle:

• Local Data: Cleared immediately upon deleting the mobile app or clearing app storage.
• Right to be Forgotten: You can permanently delete your cloud account at any time in the mobile app settings or by calling DELETE /api/v1/account. This triggers an immediate, cascade deletion of all your vehicle records, diagnostic scans, observations, and revokes all active tokens.
• Data Portability (Art. 20 GDPR): You can export your entire dataset in machine-readable JSON at any time via GET /api/v1/account/export.
• Backups: No scheduled database backup runs at present. A database copy is made manually on the production server before maintenance and is deleted within 30 days; such a copy can still contain data from an account deleted after it was taken.

9. Your Rights as a Data Subject

Under global data privacy frameworks (including the EU/UK GDPR, California CCPA/CPRA, and Brazilian LGPD), you have full statutory rights to access, rectify, erase, restrict processing, obtain data portability, and object to processing or automated profiling. We never sell your personal information or telemetry to data brokers.

To exercise any of your rights, email our Privacy Office directly at privacy@obd-vault.com. Verified requests are fulfilled within 30 days without charge.

10. Device Permissions Summary

• Bluetooth / Nearby Devices: Used exclusively to communicate with your ELM327-compatible BLE adapter and, on Android, with a Bluetooth Classic adapter you have already paired in system settings. Never used for beacon tracking or location profiling.
• Local Network (iOS) / network access: Used only to connect to a Wi-Fi OBD-II adapter at the address and port you enter. OBD Vault does not scan, map, or record other devices on your local network.
• Notifications (Android) / Live Activities (iOS): Show the status of a trip being recorded (vehicle name, recording state, elapsed time and distance) and let you stop it. The content is generated on your device, is not sent through a push service, and is visible on your Lock Screen; you can turn it off in system settings.
• Background operation: Lets trip recording continue with the screen locked (a foreground service on Android, background Bluetooth on iOS). It runs only while a trip is recorded from your connected adapter and collects the same vehicle data as recording with the app open. On iPhone, Wi-Fi adapters do not record in the background.
• Location (Android 11 and earlier only): These Android versions require the Location permission to scan for Bluetooth Low Energy devices. OBD Vault does not read, record, or store your location.