Privacy Policy
Last updated 18 September 2026
Hoard is an app for metal detectorists and history hunters. It identifies your finds, records your digs, and helps you connect with clubs. This policy explains, in plain English, what information Hoard collects, why, who it is shared with, and the rights you have over it.
Hoard is run from the United Kingdom. For UK and EU data protection law (UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018), Hoard is the "data controller" — the party responsible for your data. You can reach us at [email protected].
1. What we collect
Your account
- Your email address and a password (the password is stored in a scrambled, one-way form we cannot read).
- A username and any profile details you choose to add.
- If you sign in with Google, we receive your email address and name from Google to create your account.
Your finds and photos
- Photos you take or upload of an object so it can be identified.
- The details you enter about a find — notes, condition, the answers to the pre-scan questions, and any location you attach to it.
- To identify an object, the photo and those details are sent to our identification provider (see section 3).
- The first photo of a scan is kept on our server so we can review a scan if you report a problem with it.
Location
- A location you attach to a find, if you choose to add one.
- The GPS route of a dig you record. This route is encrypted on your own device before it leaves your phone — Hoard's servers store it in a locked form and cannot read where you have been.
- Pins ("waypoints") and planned dig locations you save.
Payments
- If you subscribe or a club takes payments, this is handled by our secure payment processor. Hoard never sees or stores your card number.
- We store a payment reference for your account and your current plan (free, Standard or Pro) and its status.
Clubs and community
- Which clubs you belong to, your role in them, and your RSVPs to club digs.
- Posts, comments and reactions you make in the community feed.
Usage and anti-abuse
- Anonymous usage events — for example that a scan happened or a screen was opened — tied only to a bare account ID, with no name, email or IP address attached. These help us see what works and what to improve.
- To stop the free trial being taken over and over, we record a device fingerprint and IP address when a trial starts. If you delete your account, the IP address and account ID are removed and only the device fingerprint is kept.
- Referral codes, and who referred whom, if you use the referral feature.
2. Why we use it
| What for | Legal basis |
|---|---|
| Running your account and the app you asked for | Performing our contract with you |
| Identifying your photos and finds | Performing our contract with you |
| Taking subscription and club payments | Performing our contract with you |
| Anonymous analytics to improve the app | Our legitimate interest in improving Hoard |
| Limiting repeat free trials | Our legitimate interest in preventing abuse |
| Transactional messages (e.g. a failed payment) | Performing our contract with you |
3. Who we share it with
We do not sell your data. We use a small number of trusted service providers ("processors") to run Hoard. Each only receives what it needs to do its job.
| Category | What it does | What it receives |
|---|---|---|
| Automated content-analysis provider | Identifies your photos and finds | The photo and the details you entered about the object |
| Payment processor | Processes payments | Your payment details and email (Hoard does not see your card number) |
| Database and sign-in provider | Stores your account and app data securely | Your account and app data |
| Hosting provider | Hosts the Hoard server | Data passing through the app |
| Analytics provider | Privacy-friendly usage analytics | Anonymous usage events (no name, email or IP) |
| Location-naming service | Turns coordinates into a 3-word address | Coordinates for a location you are working with |
| Weather data provider | Weather for detecting conditions | A general county location, not your exact position |
| Reference-image sources | Show reference images and price examples | Search terms (the type of object), not your identity |
| Sign-in provider | Optional "Sign in with Google" | Your email and name, only if you use it |
We do not share your find data with the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) or any other third party, except where required by law.
Some of these providers are based outside the UK. Where data leaves the UK, it is protected by the safeguards required under UK data protection law.
4. How long we keep it
We keep your data for as long as your account exists. When you delete your account (see section 5), we remove your finds, digs, pins, planned digs, club memberships, RSVPs, preferences, profile and login. Two things are treated specially:
- The anti-abuse device fingerprint is kept, but stripped of your IP address and account ID, so the repeat-trial limit still works without holding personal data.
- Anonymous analytics events stay, because they carry only a bare account ID and no name, email or IP.
5. Your rights
Under UK GDPR you have the right to access, correct, or delete your data, and to receive a copy of it. In Hoard you can:
- Delete your account and data from Settings → your account, at any time.
- Export your finds to a spreadsheet (CSV) from Settings.
- Edit your profile and finds directly in the app.
To make any other request, or to complain, email [email protected]. You also have the right to complain to the UK's Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk.
6. Children
Hoard is not intended for children under 16. We do not knowingly collect data from children. If you believe a child has created an account, contact us and we will remove it.
7. Security
Passwords are stored in a scrambled, one-way form. Dig routes are encrypted on your device before they reach us. Card payments are handled entirely by our payment processor. No system is perfectly secure, but we take reasonable steps to protect your data.
8. Changes to this policy
If we change this policy we will update the date at the top of this page. For significant changes we will let you know in the app.
9. Contact
Questions about this policy or your data: [email protected].