Privacy Policy

Last updated: March 21, 2026

DBQ Cams ("we", "us", "our") operates the dbqcams.com website. This page informs you of our policies regarding the collection, use, and disclosure of information when you use our site.

Information We Collect

We collect minimal information to operate the site and improve your experience:

• Anonymous analytics: We track page views and unique visitors using anonymized, hashed IP addresses. We use a daily rotating salt so your IP cannot be recovered from the hash. No personally identifiable information is stored from general browsing.
• Anonymous visitor identifier: Your browser generates a random identifier for itself and stores it on your device. We use it to tell whether visits belong to the same browser, so we can measure how many people return. It is not derived from your IP address, your device, or anything about you, it is never shared, and clearing your browser storage replaces it with a new one.
• How you arrived and what you used: The website that linked you here (the domain only, never the full address), your device type (phone, tablet or desktop), your browser window width, and the country and, where our network provider supplies it, the city that your connection appears to come from. This tells us whether to build for phones and whether visitors are local.
• What you did on the site: Which cameras you opened, filters and searches you used, cameras you favourited, and clicks on any advertisement. Search terms are stored as typed, so please do not enter personal information in the camera search box.
• Camera view tracking: We track which cameras are viewed to understand usage patterns and improve the service. This data is anonymous.
• Contact form submissions: If you submit a contact form or advertising inquiry, we collect the name, email, and message you provide. This is used solely to respond to your inquiry.
• Incident reports: If you report a traffic incident, we store a hashed version of your IP address (not the actual IP) to prevent abuse. Reports are automatically deleted after 24 hours.

Cookies and Local Storage

We use the following:

• Session cookie: Used only for admin authentication. Not set for regular visitors.
• Local storage: Used to save your theme preference (light/dark mode), favorite cameras, whether you've dismissed the install prompt, whether the map is showing, and the anonymous visitor identifier described above. Everything except that identifier stays on your device.
• Session storage: Holds a random identifier for the current browser tab, so a single visit can be measured as one visit. It disappears when you close the tab.

Third-Party Services

We use the following third-party services that may collect information according to their own privacy policies:

• National Weather Service (NWS): Weather data
• USGS: River level data
• Iowa DOT: Traffic camera feeds and road conditions
• Cloudflare: CDN and DNS services
• Google Fonts: Typography (Inter and JetBrains Mono)
• Leaflet / CartoDB: Map tiles
• RainViewer: Radar imagery
• Google Analytics: Anonymous website usage analytics (page views, session duration, device type). Google may set cookies. See Google's Privacy Policy

Data Retention

• Anonymous analytics data is retained indefinitely in aggregate form (daily totals).
• The per-visit records described above are deleted automatically after 90 days. Only the daily totals survive that.
• Contact form submissions are retained until manually deleted by administrators.
• Incident reports are automatically deleted after 24 hours.
• No personal browsing history or IP addresses are permanently stored.

Opting Out

Clearing this site's data in your browser removes the visitor identifier and every other value we store on your device. Browsing with storage blocked, or in a private window, also works: the site keeps functioning and we simply cannot tell your visits apart. We do not sell or share any of this with anyone.

Data Security

We take reasonable measures to protect the limited data we collect. The site is served over HTTPS, and all sensitive operations use industry-standard security practices. We do not sell, trade, or share your information with third parties.

Children's Privacy

Our site is intended for general audiences and does not knowingly collect information from children under 13.

Your Rights

You may:

• Clear your local storage/cookies at any time via your browser settings
• Request deletion of any contact form submission by emailing us
• Use the site without providing any personal information

Changes to This Policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. Changes will be posted on this page with an updated date.

Contact

If you have questions about this privacy policy, please contact us through the contact form on our site at dbqcams.com.