Piu

Privacy Policy

Piu — Birds of Brazil Guide · Updated October 19, 2026

Summary

Piu has no accounts, no sign-in and no ads, and it doesn't track you across apps and websites. Your sightings stay on your device. Only when you ask to identify a bird from a photo is that photo sent to our server, analyzed and discarded at once. To improve the app we collect anonymous usage data and crash reports, and you can turn this off at any time in My list → About → Share anonymous usage data.

Your sightings

The sightings you mark are saved only in a local database on your device: the bird, the date and time, the region (city and state), the optional note and, if you choose, your own photo and the exact point of the sighting. These details and photos are not sent to any server, and we have no access to them. The only exception is a photo you send yourself to be identified (see below).

There is no cloud sync yet. If you delete the app, your sightings and photos are deleted with it.

Photo identification

In the Identify tab you can take or choose a photo of a bird so Piu can suggest which one it is. To do that, the app sends our server (Google Cloud, in Brazil):

  • a reduced copy of the photo (up to 1024 pixels), without the photo's place and date data;
  • the Brazilian state where the photo was taken, when the app knows it, so only that region's birds are considered. The city and the exact point are never sent;
  • a random identifier of this app install, to count the free identifications;
  • App Check (Firebase) and DeviceCheck (Apple) tokens, which prove the request comes from the real app and prevent abuse. DeviceCheck keeps at Apple only a "free identifications used" flag for this device, with no data about you.
  • on Android, App Check uses Play Integrity (Google) instead of DeviceCheck, and the install identifier is derived from the app's ID on the device (the Android ID, which is different for each app and does not identify you), used only to count the free identifications.

The photo is analyzed in the server's memory and discarded right away. It is not stored, does not go into the server logs and is not used to train models. The server keeps only the number of identifications per install identifier and, to run the service, the time, response time and suggested bird, without the photo, any place or your IP address.

Without internet, the photo stays on your device until you tap Identify. Nothing is sent unless you ask.

Location

Using your location is optional. While saving a sighting, Piu only reads your position when you tap "Use my location" or take a photo with the app's camera before choosing a place, and it only asks for the permission at that moment.

  • The app reads your exact position once, only at that moment.
  • If you attach a photo from your library that has a location, the app uses the location stored in the photo itself, without reading your position.
  • To turn the position (or the photo's location) into "City, State", the app uses the system's own geocoding service (Apple's on iPhone, Google's on Android). The coordinate is sent to that service only for this conversion.
  • A sighting keeps the city, the state and, when the place came from your position or from the photo, the exact point (latitude and longitude). That point stays only on your device, to show the sighting on the map, and is never sent to us.
  • On iPhone, the My list map uses Apple's map services (MapKit): the system downloads from Apple the map images for the area shown on screen, and your sightings' points are drawn on the device itself.
  • On Android, the My list map uses Google Maps: the app downloads from Google the map images for the area shown on screen, and your sightings' points are drawn on the device itself.

If you prefer, you can pick the state and city from a list. You can also revoke the permission at any time in your device settings.

Anonymous usage data (Firebase Analytics)

We use Firebase Analytics, by Google, to understand how the app is used and decide what to improve. It records events such as:

  • screens opened (e.g. guide, a bird's page, my list);
  • which bird's page was opened and which song was played;
  • that a sighting was saved, whether it was the first time for that bird, and whether the region came from your location or the list (not the region itself);
  • that a search was made and how many results it had (not the text you typed);
  • that a photo identification was made, where the photo came from (camera, library or queue), the confidence band of the result and which option you picked (not the photo);
  • which filters were used;
  • the app's language (Portuguese or English).

Firebase also records technical information, such as the device model, the system and app versions, a random app-installation identifier, and the approximate country or region, which Google infers from the IP address. This data doesn't include your name, email, sightings, notes or exact location, and it isn't used for advertising or to track you in other apps.

Privacy and security in Firebase

Crash reports (Firebase Crashlytics)

If the app closes because of an error, Firebase Crashlytics sends a technical report so we can fix it: where in the code the error happened, the device model, the system and app versions, and a random installation identifier. The report doesn't include your sightings or other personal data.

How to turn it off

In the app, open My list, tap the gear and turn off Share anonymous usage data. From then on the app stops sending usage data and crash reports. Deleting the app also removes the installation identifier.

Bird photos and songs

Photos and recordings are built into the app and work offline. They are works by photographers and sound recordists who published them under open licenses (CC BY and CC0), mostly on iNaturalist. Credits are in the app, under About → Credits and licenses. Credit links open external pages in your browser, which follow those sites' policies.

Your rights (Brazil's LGPD and similar laws)

You can ask about the data processed or request deletion of the usage data linked to your device by writing to the contact below. Since there are no accounts or names, we may need the installation identifier; if you prefer, just turn collection off and delete the app.

Children

Piu doesn't ask for or collect personal data, such as a name or email, from anyone, including children.

Changes to this policy

If Piu starts handling other data — for example with cloud sync or identifying birds by their song — this page will be updated before the change reaches the app.

Contact

iOSBR Development · [email protected]