Privacy policy

Information we collect

This site may store information on your device through standard browser technologies, for purposes such as saving display settings. It may also collect information about site access to improve the quality of the service. This information is never used to identify any specific individual.

In addition, to show "Recently viewed towns", information about the location pages you have viewed (the location name, the prefecture, and the date you viewed it) is stored only in your browser's storage (localStorage). This information is never sent to a server. You can delete the history at any time with the "Clear all history" button on each page or with your browser's function for deleting site data.

Location information (current location features)

Current location features such as "Find locations near me" and "Go to my location" use location information through the browser's standard mechanism only when you press the button. Location information is used only within your browser to move the map and show nearby locations, and it is neither sent to this site's servers nor stored. You can change whether to allow the use of location information at any time in your browser settings.

Address / place name search

Addresses and place names entered in the search box of the "Map of aerial photographs then and now" are sent to the address search server of the Geospatial Information Authority of Japan (GSI) only when you search. The text you enter is neither sent to this site's servers nor stored.

Use of third-party services

This site may use third-party services for access analytics. These services may collect information through standard browser technologies. The information collected does not include information that identifies a specific individual, such as names or contact details. If you have enabled your browser's "Do Not Track" setting, access analytics is not performed.

Information collected through inquiries / feedback

The content you enter when making an inquiry or giving feedback on a page is used only to respond to inquiries and to improve the quality of the site, and is not used for any other purpose. To prevent spam submissions, information about the sender's network may be stored for a certain period.

When you make an inquiry, the sender's IP address is collected and retained to prevent and respond to misuse.

Rankings in Grow a Town: 50 Years

When you play Grow a Town: 50 Years on the daily town, a record of the game is sent to this site's server when you start and when you finish the 50 years. What is sent is an identifier created for each device (32 random characters), the moves generated by the game (where you placed which tool, undos, advancing 10 years, and the time of each), and two word numbers for your name. It does not include names or contact details. If you transfer your save to another device, the same identifier is used there. The server replays the moves to work out the population after 50 years and keeps, as a ranking record, the identifier, the word numbers for your name, the population, and how the game ended and its title for 60 days. The list of moves itself is not kept. The start record (identifier, town, and time) is deleted after about 7 days.

To stop excessive sending, the sender's IP address is turned into a value that cannot be turned back, used only to count submissions, and deleted after 2 days. The ranking table may show the name words, the population, how the game ended and its title, and the first 8 characters of the identifier.

When you show your code in Compare with friends, an 8-character code and a key made from random numbers are saved on your device. The server registers only the code, a value made from the key that cannot be turned back, the date it was made, the number of days your results were shown to friends, and the last day counted. It holds nothing about the owner. The registration has no time limit, and making a new code deletes the old code's registration. Only while showing is on, the result of your 50 years (population, how the game ended and its title, the word numbers for your name, and the number of days shown) is kept for friends for up to 3 days, and people who know your code can read only that day's result. Pressing Hide deletes that day's record for friends (the registration stays). Your friends list stays on your device and is not sent to the server. The friends' codes sent to read their results are not kept. The IP address is handled as above for counting, and the counts are deleted within 2 hours.

Changes to this policy

This policy may be changed without notice. The changed content takes effect when it is posted on this page.