How GPXTopo keeps your track private
A track file can show where you live and when you are away. GPXTopo reads your file in your browser and never uploads it. This guide explains what does go online and how to see it yourself.
What stays on your device
- The track file (GPX, FIT, TCX, GeoJSON, or KML) and every point in it. It is read and drawn locally.
- The posters, 3D-print files, and videos you export. They are built in your browser.
- Your settings and saved looks. They live in your browser's local storage on this device. A saved look holds appearance settings only, never coordinates.
What goes online
- The page itself. Opening a page asks the site host for ordinary files, such as the page, its scripts, and its fonts.
- Elevation tiles, to build the terrain. They come from AWS Terrain Tiles, or from Mapterhorn if that fails.
- Imagery tiles, only if you choose an imagery source. They come from EOX or from OpenTopoMap.
- Peaks and lakes, only if you turn on Map features. The studio sends the map area, not your route, to the Overpass API at overpass-api.de.
A tile request names a square of the map. The server that answers can see which squares you asked for, so it can tell roughly which area you looked at. It does not receive your file, your route line, or your statistics. GPXTopo has no account, no analytics, and no cookies.
Steps to keep optional requests off
- In the sidebar, under Terrain, check Imagery source. Choose No imagery. The terrain still needs elevation tiles.
- In the same section, keep Map features off. It is off until you turn it on, and no look can turn it on for you.
- Expand Source details to see which elevation and imagery sources the current preview uses.
Hide where you start and finish
After you load a track, the sidebar lists it under Route. Use Trim start and Trim end to cut the first and last part of the route. Trimming changes the poster and the preview. It does not change your file.
If you share a poster, remember that it shows the shape of the route. The Clean preset under Stats hides the title and the numbers, but not the route.
Check it yourself
Open your browser's developer tools, select the Network tab, and load a track in the studio. You should see requests for page files and map tiles, and nothing that carries your file.