Privacy Policy
Last updated: 2026. This policy explains what the Vessel Assistance website and app collect and why. It is written in plain language on purpose.
The short version
- Your vessel data - inventory, notes, certificates, DP record, CV and everything else you enter in the app - is stored on your own computer. The website does not receive it.
- We keep only what is needed for your account: your e-mail address, name (if you give it), a protected form of your password, and when you sign in or download.
- We do not sell your data and we do not show advertising.
Who we are
Vessel Assistance is run by Capt M.Magdy. Contact: support@vesselassistance.org.
What we collect on the website
- Account details: e-mail address, name, the date you joined, and your password stored only as a one-way hash (we cannot read it). You may also give a phone number, rank, company and type of vessel; these are optional and you can change or clear them in My account.
- Sign-in security: if you turn on two-step sign-in we store the secret for your authenticator app (to check codes), a hash of your recovery codes, and the public part of any passkey you add. A passkey's private key never leaves your device.
- Account activity: when you confirm your e-mail, when you last signed in and how many times, and which installer you downloaded and when.
- Technical data: your IP address is used briefly to protect against abuse (for example limiting sign-in attempts). Our hosting provider keeps ordinary server logs.
- Cookies: a session cookie that keeps you signed in, a security cookie that protects forms, and short-lived cookies during two-step sign-in. We do not use advertising or tracking cookies.
- Human check: sign-up, sign-in and password-reset pages may use Cloudflare Turnstile to tell people from robots. Cloudflare receives your browser details and IP address for that check.
What the app may send us
When the app's account sign-in and licence checks are switched on, the app will contact this website to confirm your account and licence. It may send your account, the app version, your computer type and when the app is started and closed, so that we can keep the service running and understand how it is used. It does not send your vessel data, notes, certificates, records or files. Any change to this will be described here before it is made.
The optional AI assistant needs internet. If you use it, the text you ask it to work on has to be sent to an AI service to produce the answer. The app asks before sending, and you can leave AI switched off.
Why we use it
- To create and protect your account and let you download the app.
- To send e-mails you need: confirming your address and resetting a password.
- To keep the service secure and to count how many people use it.
Who else handles it
We use service providers to run the website: a hosting provider, an e-mail delivery service, Cloudflare (human check), and GitHub to store the installer files. They process data only to provide those services. We do not share your account details with anyone else unless the law requires it.
How long we keep it
While your account exists. If you delete your account (My account → Delete my account) your account record and its sign-in and download history are removed. Ordinary server logs and backups are removed on their normal schedule.
Your rights
You can ask us for a copy of your account data, ask us to correct it, or ask us to delete it, and you can delete your account yourself at any time. Write to support@vesselassistance.org. If you are in the EU, UK or a similar region you can also complain to your data protection authority.
Security
Passwords are hashed with a modern algorithm, connections use HTTPS, and sign-in attempts are limited. No system is perfectly secure; please use a password you do not use elsewhere.
Children
The service is for working seafarers and is not directed at children.
Changes
If we change this policy in a way that matters, we will say so on this page and, where we can, by e-mail.