Privacy Policy
Effective November 9, 2026
In short: Poʻo Lawaiʻa keeps your fishing log on your device and in your own iCloud account. We don't collect, see, sell or share any of it. There are no accounts, ads, analytics or tracking.
Who we are
Poʻo Lawaiʻa (“the app”) is made by Donald Green of Mekinesis, in Hawaiʻi. In this policy “we” means the app’s developer.
What the app stores, and where
Everything you enter stays with you: boats and engines, trips and their GPS tracks, catches, lures, photos, fuel, maintenance, expenses, receipts, manuals, charters and clients, and your own chart marks.
- On your device. The app’s database lives on your iPhone or iPad.
- In your iCloud account. If you’re signed in to iCloud, the app syncs this data between your devices through your private iCloud database (Apple CloudKit). It is stored under your Apple Account, and we have no access to it. Apple’s handling of iCloud data is covered by Apple’s Privacy Policy.
- Region packs (seafloor maps and fishery data) that you download or import are kept on your device only and aren’t synced.
Location
The app uses your location to record a trip’s track, to mark where each fish was caught and to find the marine forecast for your waters. It keeps recording in the background only while a trip is in progress, and stops when you end the trip. Locations are stored as described above and are never sent to us.
Camera and photos
The camera and photo library are used only when you choose to photograph or attach a catch, lure, receipt, part or trip photo. When you pick a photo from your library, the app reads its time and position (if it has them) to place it on the trip. Photos are stored with your data as described above.
Services the app contacts
- Ocean conditions (PacIOOS). To show the current and water temperature at a catch, the app asks the Pacific Islands Ocean Observing System’s public ocean model for that spot. The request contains only an area of about 0.08° (roughly 9 km or 5 nautical miles across) around the catch, and its date and time. It carries no name, account or device ID. As with any website, PacIOOS’s servers see your internet address. PacIOOS is run by the University of Hawaiʻi.
- Marine forecast (National Weather Service). To show the marine forecast on the Today screen, the app asks the U.S. National Weather Service (api.weather.gov) which forecast area your device is in, sending its position rounded to about 1 km (0.01°). It sends no position after that until you tap Use my location; fetching the forecast for the area you chose sends none. Without a location fix, or on land within 200 km of your most recent catch, it uses where that catch was instead, and if that isn’t in a forecast area either, it checks positions up to 48 km around you, rounded the same way, for the nearest one. The requests carry no name, account or device ID. As with any website, the Weather Service’s servers see your internet address.
- Sea surface temperature (PacIOOS and NOAA CoastWatch). When you turn on the Sea temperature map layer, the app downloads sea temperatures for the area the map shows: in Hawaii, the Pacific Islands Ocean Observing System’s ocean model forecast; elsewhere, and on a past trip’s map, NOAA CoastWatch’s satellite analysis for the latest day or the trip’s day. A catch’s page downloads the satellite analysis from NOAA CoastWatch for the catch’s day and an area of about 1° around it. Each request sends only that area, rounded out to 0.1° (about 10 km), and the day or time wanted. The requests carry no name, account or device ID. As with any website, these servers see your internet address.
- Region packs (Mekinesis). When you open the list of region packs or download one, the app fetches it from regionpacks.mekinesis.com. These are ordinary file downloads with no name, account or device ID. As with any website, the server sees your internet address; we don’t use it to identify you.
- Maps (Apple). Base maps come from Apple Maps, which Apple provides under its own privacy policy.
The app contacts no other services.
Files you export
Spreadsheets (CSV), GPX tracks and PDFs you export go only where you send them, such as Files, Mail or another app.
Beta testing and crash reports
If you test the app through Apple’s TestFlight, Apple may share with us the crash reports, device model and iOS version, and any feedback or screenshots you choose to send, under Apple’s TestFlight terms. In the App Store, Apple shares crash reports with us only if you have allowed sharing with app developers in your device settings. These reports don’t include your fishing log.
Deleting your data
- Delete any record in the app; the deletion syncs to your other devices.
- Deleting the app removes its data from that device.
- To remove the synced copy, go to Settings › your name › iCloud › Manage Account Storage (or Manage Storage) › Poʻo Lawaiʻa, and delete its data.
Children
The app isn’t directed at children under 13, and we don’t knowingly collect anyone’s information.
Changes to this policy
If the app’s handling of data changes, we’ll update this page and its effective date before the change reaches the app.
Contact
Questions about privacy: support@mekinesis.com