Park Signal — Privacy Policy

Last updated: July 1, 2026

Park Signal ("the app," "we," "us") is a theme-park wait-time companion app for iOS, made by AskTheDads. This policy explains what data the app does and does not handle.

Information we collect

Account (optional). You can use the app's core features — live waits, the park map, Nearby, and park hours — without an account. If you choose to create an account, we store a username, your email address, and a securely hashed password on our server infrastructure (operated by Cloudflare — see Third parties & service providers below), and we set a session cookie on your device so you stay signed in. Your email address is used to confirm it belongs to you, to let you reset a forgotten password, and to send you account-related messages; these messages are delivered through Cloudflare's email service on our behalf. We do not ask for your real name when you create an account; if you use Sign in with Apple and choose to share your name, we receive it once from Apple and use it only to suggest your initial display name (which you can change at any time). Some features — such as favorites that follow you across devices and the Park Pulse game — require an account.

Sign in with Apple. You can also create or access your account using Sign in with Apple. When you do, Apple gives us a verified email address — which can be Apple's private "Hide My Email" relay address if you choose to hide yours — and a unique identifier for your Apple account. We store these to recognize your account on future sign-ins and to send account-related messages. We never receive your Apple password. You can review or stop Sign in with Apple at any time in iOS Settings → (your name) → Sign in with Apple.

Account security log. For security, we keep an internal record of credential changes on your account — when a password is created, reset, or changed, the type of change, and the IP address of the request — so we can detect and investigate unauthorized access. This log is not used for advertising or shared with third parties.

Display name and avatar. When you create an account, you may choose a display name (a screen name of your choosing) and a profile avatar (an abstract, computer-generated image selected from a built-in library — not a photo). These are stored linked to your account. Your display name and avatar are publicly visible to other signed-in users on the Park Pulse leaderboard. You can update or remove your display name and avatar at any time from Settings → Account.

Park Pulse game activity. If you participate in Park Pulse, we store your daily predictions (your guessed wait times for park rides), the resulting scores, your cumulative points total, tier level, and daily streak. This data is linked to your account and is used to compute leaderboard rankings. Your display name, avatar, and cumulative score are visible to all signed-in users on the in-app leaderboard.

Anonymous usage analytics. To understand how the app is used and to keep it running reliably, the app sends basic, non-identifying information with its requests to our server:

These are recorded as aggregate usage events on our server and retained for up to 90 days. We do not use the iOS advertising identifier (IDFA), and we do not track you across other apps or websites.

Location (only when you use location features). When you use the Nearby feature, your device sends your location to our server to rank the closest rides by wait time and walking distance; that lookup is answered in real time and the location is not stored. When you start a park visit Live Activity, your device sends its location so our server can keep the Lock Screen glance ranked to the rides nearest you and, if you have enabled rain alerts, watch the forecast for the park you are at. That location is stored with your Live Activity's push token only while the visit is active, and is deleted when the visit ends, the token becomes invalid, or the subscription goes stale.

Bug reports (only when you choose to submit one). When you tap Settings → Report a Bug and submit the form, we receive the message you typed, the severity you selected, your iOS version, device model, app version, locale, and a timestamp. The IP address of the request is captured server-side for abuse prevention only. This is stored in an append-only log and used solely to triage and fix issues you report.

Stored on your device and synced via iCloud. Your favorite rides, notification preferences (alert threshold, direction, quiet hours), saved Day Plans, and ride-alert settings are stored on your device and automatically synced across your iOS devices signed into the same Apple ID using iCloud Key-Value Storage. This data is not accessible to us; it is governed by Apple's iCloud Terms and Privacy Policy. It is removed from your device when you uninstall the app; you can manage or remove it in iOS Settings → [Your Name] → iCloud → Manage Account Storage.

Wait-time data

The wait-time data displayed by the app is fetched from our service at liverides.askthedads.com, which aggregates publicly-reported park data via ThemeParks.wiki. The data flow for wait times is one-way: your device receives the data.

Permissions

Third parties & service providers

Cloudflare. We use Cloudflare, Inc. to operate our backend. Cloudflare hosts the service at liverides.askthedads.com, stores account data — your username, securely hashed password, display name, avatar, Park Pulse scores, and any email address or Sign in with Apple identifier — in Cloudflare's managed database service, and delivers account emails (verification and password-reset messages). Cloudflare processes this data only to provide hosting, storage, and email delivery on our behalf, under its data-processing terms; it is not permitted to use it for its own purposes.

Apple iCloud. Favorites, alert preferences, saved Day Plans, and ride-alert settings are synced using iCloud Key-Value Storage. Apple processes this data under its own iCloud Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

The app does not use third-party advertising SDKs or cross-app tracking libraries. We do not sell your data, and we do not share it with third parties for their own marketing.

Purchases

If you buy an optional Premium subscription or unlock, the purchase is processed by Apple through In-App Purchase — we never receive or store your payment-card details. To activate your entitlement, your device sends Apple's signed purchase confirmation (a StoreKit transaction) to our server, where we verify it with Apple and record only your entitlement status (whether Premium is active and, for subscriptions, an expiry date) tied to your account. We do not receive your name, email, or card number from this process.

Account deletion

You can delete your account at any time from Settings → Account → Delete account, which removes your account, display name, avatar, Park Pulse history, and active sessions from our server.

Children

The app is rated 4+, is not directed at children, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13.

Live Activities and the Dynamic Island

When you track a ride or start a park visit, the app uses Apple's ActivityKit to display a Live Activity on your Lock Screen and Dynamic Island. The wait-time data shown there is the same data shown elsewhere in the app. While a Live Activity is active, its updates are delivered through Apple's push notification service (APNs), which handles the update payload under Apple's own privacy policy; we do not send Apple any personal information in these updates.

Rain alerts and weather (Apple WeatherKit)

Rain alerts are off by default and available only when you are signed in and turn them on. While you are at a park with rain alerts enabled, our server checks the forecast for that park using Apple WeatherKit. Only the park's coordinates are sent to Apple for this check — never your device's location. If rain is imminent, we send a single push notification to your device suggesting the nearest indoor cover, at most once per rain onset. You can turn rain alerts off at any time in the app's Settings, and weather data is subject to Apple's privacy policy.

Unaffiliated status

Park Signal is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by The Walt Disney Company or any theme park operator. Park and attraction names, and product names such as "Lightning Lane" and "Genie+," are trademarks of their respective owners and appear in the app only to identify the things they name (nominative fair use) for the purpose of communicating publicly-reported wait-time data.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy occasionally. Material changes will be reflected by updating the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. The current version of the policy is always available at this URL.

Contact

Questions about privacy? Email support@askthedads.com or use the in-app Settings → Report a Bug form.