OpenProbe Privacy Policy
Last updated: 8 June 2026
OpenProbe is an academic research project developed at University College London.
Its purpose is to study mobile network quality through crowdsourced measurements.
OpenProbe is available on both Android and iOS.
1. Data We Collect
When you choose to contribute a measurement, OpenProbe collects:
- An anonymous random device identifier (UUID v4), generated on your device.
This identifier is not linked to your name, email, phone number, or any other
personal information.
- Approximate location, rounded to a ~100m grid (3 decimal places of
latitude/longitude). Precise GPS coordinates are discarded on-device and never
leave your device.
- A coarse location-quality label (e.g. high / medium / low), derived
on-device from GPS accuracy. The precise accuracy value is never transmitted.
- Network type (WiFi / Mobile / Ethernet / None).
- Network performance measurements:
- Latency testing performed on three default public servers
(www.google.com, 1.1.1.1, 8.8.8.8) and any user-optional custom targets.
- Download bandwidth, measured by downloading a small block of test data
from a public server.
- Device operating system type (iOS or Android).
- Optional free-text comments that you choose to enter.
- Timestamp of each measurement.
- App version.
2. Data We Do NOT Collect
OpenProbe does not collect:
- Your name, email address, phone number, or any personal identifier.
- Precise GPS coordinates (location is anonymised on-device).
- Mobile carrier name, SIM information, or IMEI.
- Browsing history, app usage, or contacts.
- Photos, microphone, or camera data.
- Advertising identifiers.
3. How We Use Your Data
Aggregated, anonymised measurements are used solely for academic research on
network quality. Specifically:
- Statistical analysis of latency, bandwidth, and reliability across locations,
network types, and device platforms.
- Publication of aggregated findings in academic papers and thesis work.
- Improvement of OpenProbe measurement methodology.
We do not sell your data, and we do not use it for advertising. Your data is
stored using Google Firebase (see Section 4); apart from this infrastructure
provider, we do not share your data with third parties except as required by
UK law.
4. How We Store Your Data
- Measurements are transmitted over an encrypted connection (HTTPS/TLS) and
stored in Google Firebase Firestore, a cloud database service provided by
Google. Google acts as a data processor and hosts the data on Google Cloud
infrastructure; see Google’s privacy documentation for how they handle
infrastructure-level data.
- Access to the stored research data is restricted to the research team.
Database security rules prevent contributors from reading or modifying any
data other than their own submissions.
- Stored data is retained for the duration of the research project. After the
project concludes, identifiable elements (if any) are removed and only
aggregated statistics are retained.
5. Your Rights
Under UK GDPR, you have the right to:
- Withdraw consent: change your upload preference any time in the app’s
Settings.
- Request deletion: contact us with your anonymous device ID (visible in the
app) and we will remove any matching records from the database.
- Request access: ask what data we hold linked to your anonymous ID.
- Lodge a complaint: with the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).
6. Children’s Privacy
OpenProbe is not directed at children under 16. We do not knowingly collect data
from children under 16.
7. Changes to This Policy
We may update this policy as the project evolves. The “Last updated” date at the
top of this document will reflect any changes.
For questions, data deletion requests, or any privacy concerns:
- Researcher: Yuxiang Yao
- Institution: University College London
- Email: openprobeUCL@gmail.com