Privacy Policy

The short version

Ember Index is a wildfire risk information service for California properties. We store the addresses you ask us to monitor, the email address you give us for alerts, and anything you choose to submit (photos, checklists, community posts). We do not sell your personal information, and we do not share your address or email with advertisers.

What we collect

• Property addresses and coordinates you search or monitor, so we can re-score them and send alerts.
• Email address (and optionally name and phone number, if you create an account) for sign-in, alerts, and replies to requests you submit.
• Property details you volunteer — home hardening checklist answers, structural questionnaire answers, and photos you upload to the Zone 0 scanner.
• Community content you post to fire threads or neighborhood watch groups, including any photos or video you attach. This content is visible to other users of those features.
• Basic technical data — request logs and error reports needed to keep the service running and secure.

How we use it

• To compute and re-compute an Ember Index score for the addresses you give us.
• To email you when a monitored address crosses the threshold you chose.
• To respond to a defensible-space or home-hardening assessment request you submitted. If you submit that form, your contact details and property summary are shared with a vetted assessment provider so they can contact you. We do not share that information unless you submit the form.
• To operate, debug, and secure the service.

We do not use your data for automated insurance, credit, or underwriting decisions, and Ember Index scores are informational only.

Photos you upload

Photos submitted to the Zone 0 scanner are analyzed by an automated vision model to identify combustible material near the structure. Photos attached to community posts are stored and shown to other users of that thread once approved. Do not upload images containing people, license plates, or documents you would not want seen.

Email and unsubscribing

Alert and transactional emails include a one-click unsubscribe link. You can also turn alerts off per property from your portfolio, or remove an email-only subscription from the alerts panel on any address. Unsubscribing suppresses future non-essential mail to that address.

Retention and deletion

We keep monitored properties and subscriptions until you remove them. To delete your account and associated data, email privacy@emberindex.org from the address on the account. We will confirm deletion within 30 days.

Third-party data sources

Scores are computed from public and government data — CAL FIRE hazard severity zones, NOAA/NWS weather, NIFC and interagency fire records, USGS earthquake feeds, LANDFIRE fuels, CPUC utility districts, and similar. Requesting a score sends the coordinates you supplied to those services. We also use hosting, mapping, email delivery, and error-reporting vendors that process data on our behalf.

California privacy rights

California residents may request access to, correction of, or deletion of their personal information, and may ask us to stop sharing it. We do not sell personal information. Send requests to privacy@emberindex.org.

Changes and contact

Ember Index is in active beta; this policy may change as features change, and the date above will be updated. Questions: privacy@emberindex.org. See also our terms of use.