Privacy Policy

lake.cam ("we") runs a directory of publicly viewable lake cameras. This page explains what information we collect and why.

Watching cameras

You don't need an account to browse cameras or watch a stream. We don't track individual viewers of the video itself beyond basic, aggregate server logs (see "Server logs" below).

Accounts

An account is required to submit a camera. Accounts are handled entirely by Firebase Authentication (a Google service) — you can sign in with a Google account or with an email address and password. We never see or store your password; Firebase verifies it and gives our server a signed token confirming who you are. We store your email address and account identifier so we can associate camera submissions with your account.

Camera submissions

When you submit a camera we store the camera name, lake/location, stream URL, your contact email, and any notes you provide. We use your email only to follow up about your submission. Submissions are reviewed before a camera is made public.

Cookies

We use a session cookie to keep you signed in and a CSRF token cookie to protect forms from cross-site request forgery. Neither is used for advertising or cross-site tracking.

Server logs

Like most websites, our reverse proxy logs basic request metadata (IP address, timestamp, requested path) for operating the service, diagnosing problems, and security (for example, detecting abusive login attempts). These logs are kept for a limited time and are not shared with third parties except our hosting and security infrastructure providers (Cloudflare, for edge protection and DNS).

Third parties

• Firebase / Google — authentication.
• Cloudflare — DNS, edge caching, bot/abuse protection (including Turnstile on the camera submission form), and analytics on aggregate traffic.

We don't sell your data or share it for advertising purposes.

Third-party camera content

Live streams and time-lapses are provided by the camera's owner/operator, who is responsible for its content. lake.cam doesn't control what's shown on a given camera.

Your choices

You can delete your Firebase account at any time from your account provider (e.g. Google's account settings for Google sign-in). To request deletion of submission records associated with your email, contact us below.

Changes

We may update this policy as the service changes. Material changes will update the "Last updated" date above.

Contact

Questions about this policy: [email protected].