Privacy & settings
Location settings and permissions - everything you need to know
Why share your location to Sea People
SeaPeople is built around people and their locations, and the more up-to-date your location is on the maps, the more you will benefit from SeaPeople and the community within.
Your privacy needs with regards to your location is our ultimate goal, so we have provided users with multiple options for how you share your location with others. Giving you the flexibility to share exact location all the time, never, or only while underway (tracking).
There are two distinct location settings that can effect our access to your location, and your location's visibility to other in SeaPeople: 1) Your phones internal settings (location permissions below) and 2) SeaPeople location sharing settings (see below)
Here's the list of fun features you might miss without enabling location permissions:
Trip tracking
Explore map
Hail channels
Finding people nearby
Chat map
Location permissions on your phone
We need "Always" location access to:
1) track your route when app is in the background;
2)Update your recent location for friends to see;
3) notify you when you are near a friend
🔋 This won't drain your battery.
You will be able to use some of the features with "While Using", but you won't be able to track.
If your permissions are set to any other option you won't be able to experience the full potential of SeaPeople app.
Always: Allows access to your location even when the app is in the background. This means that if you open SeaPeople and then go to any other app on your phone, we will still be able to update your location. This setting required to start tracking a trip.
While Using the App: Allows access to Location Services only when the app or one of its features is visible on screen. With this location setting SeaPeople will be able to see and update your location only when an app is visible directly on your screen (i.e. is used in the foreground). This setting is suitable for using Explore map, creating a Hail channel or viewing your location in Chat maps, however you won't be able to track a trip in this mode.
Location permissions on IOS:
Go to Settings > SeaPeople > Location
Location permissions on Android:
Go to Settings > Apps > SeaPeople > Location
In-app location sharing settings
There are two ways to reach your location settings in the app:
Option 1: Go to Profile - click Settings wheel on the top right - Location sharing will be first on the list
Option 2: Go to the Explore map - tap location pill in the top left corner - tap "Location sharing settings" button
You can select from 3 types of location sharing options:
Live - makes your precise location visible on the Explore map, in chat maps and Hail channels all the time. Your location will be automatically updated while you're using the app. This is recommended for boaters on Muti-day trips, seasonal cruising, and other times when moving regularly and wanting to keep your friends and family as up-to-date as possible.
Pinned - you can select a fixed location where you will be shown on a map. You can still show live on the maps when underway (tracking) via the 'go live' toggle on the tracking screen, and you will still get hail channel notifications based on your actual location. Unless you select 'move pin to end of track' you will be returned to your chosen pinned location when tracking completes. This is a great setting for day boaters who would like their location be visible to others in a home marina, favourite cove, etc, and ensure other users are not tracking where you are ashore.
Move pin to end of track - If you are on a multi day trip or cruising and want your pinned location to move regularly along with your journey, yet stop tracking when you finish your on water activities, toggle on this setting. Each time you finish your on water activity and stop tracking, your pin will move to the area where you ended tracking. Discontinuing location sharing while you are ashore or entering your exact marina slip.
Hidden - you won't be visible to other users on the Explore and Chat maps, also you won't be getting any new Hail channel notifications. Note that hiding your location from the map really limits what you can do within the Sea People app. Hail channels, map view within chats, displaying speed on the map, etc. are all things that will not work when you’ve selected “sharing off”. You can still show live on the maps while tracking if you toggle on the 'go live' button on the tracking screen; overriding this setting while actively tracking, and removing your form the maps once again when tracking is ended. If privacy is paramount to you, we still suggest picking a pinned location on the map somewhere distant enough to afford you the privacy you need, yet still allowing you to use the app.
Difference between location permissions and location sharing
By granting SeaPeople location permissions on your mobile device's settings you allow us access to your GPS data. Without this data the SeaPeople app will not be able to offer you tracking functionalities and any other location based benefits within the app like hail messages.
Location sharing manages your public visibility to SeaPeople community. While we encourage you to share your location while on the water we also understand that every person needs some privacy that's why you can set location to Hidden or Pinned.