Policies Internal operating policies
Sensitive Location Data Policy
Protects homes, shelters, children’s programs, places of worship, support services, vulnerable populations, and safety-sensitive locations.
- Version
- 0.1.0
- Effective
- May 20, 2026
- Last reviewed
- May 20, 2026
- Review cycle
- every 6 months
- Master Policy Index entry
- §4 #12
Policy text
Some locations are not ordinary public points on a map. Homes, shelters, children’s programs, places of worship, support services, vulnerable-population services, and other safety-sensitive locations require stronger protections than the baseline Privacy Policy provides. This policy defines what “sensitive” means in operation and what protections attach.
It applies to product teams, moderation staff, civic-pin pipelines, AI tools that touch location data, and ambassadors who may propose mapping such places. Public exposure of a sensitive location requires explicit authorization from the relevant operator or community.
Principles this policy enforces
- Location is used for presence, not surveillance
- Collect less, protect more
- Public data and personal data are not the same thing
What it requires
- Treat homes, shelters, children’s programs, and safety-sensitive locations as sensitive by default.
- Require explicit authorization before publishing a sensitive location.
- Default Civic Pins involving sensitive locations to municipality-only visibility.
What it forbids
- Do not auto-publish sensitive locations.
- Do not use sensitive-location data for AI training without explicit consent.
- Do not surface sensitive locations through open data or APIs.
How it applies
- Product teams
- Moderation staff
- Civic-pin pipelines
- AI tools handling location data
- Ambassadors
References
- Map.ca Policy Constitution §2 principle 2 — Location is used for presence, not surveillance
- Map.ca Policy Constitution §2 principle 8 — Public data and personal data are not the same thing
Related policies
Privacy Policy
What Map.ca collects, why, how long it is kept, who it is shared with, and what rights people have.
Civic Pin Policy
What can be reported as a Civic Pin, who can report it, how it displays, and how it routes to municipalities.
Child and Youth Safety Policy
How Map.ca protects minors: photo controls, sensitive locations near schools, age-appropriate experiences, mandatory reporting handling.
Open Data Policy
What aggregated and anonymized data Map.ca releases as open data, with what license, and what stays out.