Data policy

1. Why this policy exists

terremotoVE is a collaborative emergency response map created following the earthquakes of June 24, 2026 in Venezuela. It documents collapsed buildings, missing persons, hospitalized individuals, and other events related to the disaster.

To fulfill its purpose — helping families locate their loved ones — the map requires publishing personally identifiable data, including names and national ID numbers. We are aware that this creates a real tension with data minimization principles. This policy explains how we manage that tension and what commitments we make to the people whose data is in the system.

2. What data we collect

2.1 Public data (visible on the map)

The map publicly shows:

• Event type (missing person, hospitalized person, person presumed deceased, collapsed building, pet, other)
• Full name of the person, when available
• National ID number, when available
• Event location (geographic coordinates and/or address)
• Event description
• Information source (link to social media, WhatsApp message, etc.)

The national ID is included only when necessary to distinguish between people with similar names. It is the minimum required for the map to fulfill its function.

2.2 Private data (not visible on the map)

The system may contain, in internal records held by the volunteer team, additional data that is not published publicly:

• Phone numbers of family members or contact persons
• Internal verification information
• Volunteer contact details

This data is subject to the same retention and security rules as public data.

3. Where the data comes from

Direct reports: anyone can submit a report through the public form. The form requires event type and location as minimum mandatory fields.

Reports from family members and close contacts: people reporting a missing or affected family member or acquaintance.

Public sources monitored by volunteers: our team monitors social media (Twitter/X, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok) and WhatsApp groups where families have published information about missing or affected persons. In these cases, the information was already public before being added to the map.

4. Why we publish personal data

We recognize that publishing names and national ID numbers of missing or affected persons is not recommended practice in data protection under normal circumstances. However, in the context of this emergency, the decision is based on the following considerations:

• Families searching for loved ones need to identify a specific person among thousands of reports. Name and national ID are the only reliable identifiers available.
• In most cases, the information was already published publicly by the families themselves on social media as part of their search.
• The Venezuelan State is not providing verifiable official information about victims, which places on civil society the responsibility to document.
• The alternative — not publishing the data — would mean the map cannot fulfill its purpose of connecting families with information about their loved ones.

We assess this decision as a proportionate measure given the active humanitarian emergency context, subject to review when circumstances change.

5. How we protect the data

• Access to raw system data (including private contact data) is restricted to the Acceso Libre coordinating team and volunteers with data management roles.
• Volunteers are subject to an internal protocol that prohibits sharing private data outside established coordination channels.
• We do not share data with third parties, governments, security forces, or commercial organizations.
• The public reporting form collects only the information necessary to document the event.
• The data collection platform (KoboToolbox) is operated by Kobo Inc., a non-profit organization. Their privacy policies apply to data stored on their infrastructure.

6. Data retention and deletion

Map data will be retained for a maximum period of two years from the date of the earthquake (until June 24, 2028), unless there is a justified reason for longer retention, such as ongoing judicial identification processes or human rights investigations.

At the end of the retention period:

• Public map data will be removed from public access.
• Private internal data will be permanently deleted.
• An anonymized and aggregated version of the data may be retained (for example, number of reports by zone, event types) for historical documentation and public policy purposes. This version will not contain personally identifiable data.

7. Your rights over your data

If you are the person referenced in a report, or a family member of that person, you may:

Request deletion of a record: if a person's data is no longer relevant (because they were located, because the data is incorrect, or because the family requests privacy), we will remove the record from the map.

Request a correction: if the published information is incorrect or outdated, we will correct it.

Request information: you may ask us what data we hold about a specific person.

For any of these requests, write to us at accesolibreve@gmail.com. We respond within a maximum of 72 hours during the active emergency phase.

8. Updates to this policy

This policy may be updated as the emergency situation or team practices evolve. Any significant change will be announced on the website with at least 7 days' notice, except in emergency situations requiring an immediate response.

The current version will always be available on this site.