Privacy Policy

Effective Date: September 2, 2026

This policy explains what data Garitas uses on the website and in the iPhone and Apple Watch apps, why it is used, and the choices you have.

1. Data We Use

Garitas requires no Garitas account and limits data to what is needed to show wait times, deliver the alerts you enable, protect the service, and measure the website.

• No Garitas account: We do not ask for your name, email address, or registration to use Garitas. Apple manages the Garitas Pro purchase; Garitas does not receive your payment-card details.
• Alerts you choose: If you enable alerts, the app sends a random installation identifier, the Apple push-notification token, environment, language, and app version. We also store the crossing, lane, rule, and duration you select, plus the state needed to deliver and diagnose those notifications.
• Service requests: When the app or website contacts Garitas to check wait times or configure alerts, our servers receive the requested crossing identifiers and routine connection data, such as your IP address and client identifier (User-Agent). The app may also request public wait-time data directly from CBP, which receives routine connection data for that request. Garitas uses request data to respond, protect the service, and limit abuse—not for in-app analytics.
• Website usage: Aggregate statistics about which crossings are viewed and how the website is used, measured with Google Analytics (see Section 7). The iPhone and Apple Watch apps contain no analytics.
• On-device location: With your permission, the app uses a one-time location to sort nearby crossings. That coordinate is processed on your device and is not sent to Garitas.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use that data only to:

• Show the wait times, maps, and statistics you request.
• Store your rules and deliver the wait-time notifications you enable.
• Understand aggregate website usage and improve the site.
• Secure and operate the service, provide support, and meet legal obligations.

3. Service Providers and Disclosure

We do not sell your data or share it with advertisers or data brokers. Apple processes App Store purchases and push delivery; Google LLC processes website analytics on our behalf (see Section 7). The app may also contact CBP's public wait-time service directly, as described in Section 1. We may disclose information when required by law.

4. Data Security

We use HTTPS and access controls to protect service data. No system is completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security.

5. Your Choices

• You can turn off or delete alerts in the app and change notification or location permissions in system settings.
• You can turn off website analytics in this browser with the control in Section 7.
• You can contact us with a privacy question or to request deletion of data we can identify. Garitas has no accounts, and the random installation identifier is not linked to your name or email, so we cannot locate an installation from those details alone.
• Deleting an alert in the app deletes that rule. If an installation does not register with Garitas for 90 days, it is deactivated and stops receiving alerts; its inactive technical record is not automatically deleted based on age.

6. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes will be reflected on this page with a revised "Effective Date." Please review this policy periodically.

7. Website Analytics

The website uses Google Analytics 4, a measurement service provided by Google LLC, exclusively as product analytics: understanding aggregate usage to improve the site. The iPhone and Apple Watch apps contain no analytics or tracking. In practice this means:

• What is measured: pages viewed, aggregate interactions with site features, technical device and browser details, and the approximate region derived from your IP address. We never measure free-text searches, emails, coordinates, or identifiers of our own.
• Identifiers: Google Analytics sets first-party cookies (such as _ga) to distinguish visits. We never link them to your name, email, or any account.
• What is permanently off: storing and using data for advertising (ad_storage, ad_user_data, and ad_personalization are set to denied), Google Signals, remarketing, and audiences. Your data is never used for advertising and never sold.
• Retention: event data is kept in Google Analytics for 14 months — the minimum that still lets us compare border seasons year over year — then deleted automatically.
• Your choice: you can turn measurement off in this browser with the control at the end of this section; every site feature keeps working. Content blockers are honored too.

Google processes this data on our behalf. For details on how Google handles data, see Google's Privacy Policy.