CarWave – Privacy Policy
Last updated: 2 October 2026 · PHI SOFTWARE
CarWave is a radio player. We do not have user accounts, we do not show ads, we do not track you across apps or websites, and we do not sell or share personal data. We collect anonymous crash reports and usage statistics to improve the app (see below).
Data stored on your device
Your favorites, recently played stations, recently played songs, settings and data usage statistics are stored only on your device. If you turn on iCloud sync, your favorites are also stored in your own iCloud account through Apple; we cannot access them.
Location
If you allow it, CarWave uses your approximate location to show "Stations near you". The coordinates are sent once to the open Radio Browser directory to find nearby stations. They are not stored by us and are not linked to you.
Radio streams and the station directory
Station lists come from the Radio Browser directory, and audio comes directly from each broadcaster's server. Like any internet request, these services can see your IP address. Their own privacy policies apply.
Podcasts
To find podcasts, your search words and the selected country are sent to Apple's public podcast directory (iTunes Search API), and the country's top list is loaded from Apple's public charts. Episodes are read from each show's public RSS feed and played directly from the creator's hosting server; like any internet request, these services can see your IP address. Followed shows and listening positions are stored only on your device. Anonymous usage events may include the public name of a podcast you play or follow (see below), never your search words.
Downloaded episodes
Episodes you download are fetched from the creator's own host and stored only inside CarWave on your device; they are excluded from iCloud backup and are never uploaded anywhere. Played episodes are removed automatically if you keep that setting on, and you can delete downloads at any time in Library › Downloads or Settings.
Sharing
When you share a station or podcast, the link only contains its public directory ID (for example phisoftware.github.io/carwave/s/?id=…). Opening the link loads a page from GitHub Pages, which shows the public name and artwork from Radio Browser or Apple's podcast directory; like any web page, these services can see the visitor's IP address. Nothing about you is included in the link.
Song identification
When you tap "Identify song", a short audio signature of the radio stream (not your microphone) is sent to Apple's ShazamKit service to find the song.
Siri, widgets and Apple Watch
Voice requests are processed by Apple's Siri. So that Siri recognizes their names, the titles of the podcasts in your library (followed, in progress, downloaded) are shared with Siri on your device; they are not sent to us. Widgets and the Apple Watch app only show data that is already on your devices.
Crash reports and usage statistics
CarWave uses Google Firebase Crashlytics and Firebase Analytics. When the app crashes, a crash report (device model, iOS version, app version and the technical state of the app) is sent to us. Anonymous usage events tell us which features are used, for example that a station or podcast was played, an episode was downloaded, a song was recognized or CarPlay was connected, together with the station's or podcast's public directory name. These events use a random app instance identifier; they contain no name, e-mail, account, precise location or advertising identifier, and they are not linked to you. Your search terms and the names or addresses of stations you add yourself are never sent. Ad personalization is turned off. Google processes this data on our behalf under Firebase's privacy terms.
Children
CarWave does not knowingly collect personal information from anyone, including children.
Contact
Questions: info@phisoftware.com.tr