The Shelter — Support

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Contact

Email [email protected] — for questions, problems, privacy requests and legal notices alike. The Shelter is made by Alexey Komarov, an independent developer.

In the app you can also write to us:

The Shelter is not an emergency service. In an emergency, follow the instructions of your local authorities and call your local emergency number.

Frequently asked questions

Where does the earthquake data come from?

From more than 40 public seismological agencies — among them the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) and GFZ Potsdam — combined into one open feed (https://github.com/TheShelterApp/earthquakes-feed, full credits in its ATTRIBUTIONS file). Each earthquake's page lists the agencies that reported it under "Providers". Alerts are sent after an agency publishes an event, usually within minutes. The Shelter is not an earthquake early-warning system: it cannot warn you before shaking starts.

Why do my alerts arrive silently?

On first launch The Shelter enrolls in provisional notifications: alerts go quietly to Notification Center so you can judge them without a permission prompt. Tap Enable sound & banners when the app offers it, or open Profile → Settings → Earthquake alerts, or allow them later in iOS Settings → Notifications → The Shelter. Strong nearby earthquakes also start a Live Activity on the Lock Screen.

Which earthquakes will alert me?

By default: magnitude 4.5 or stronger within 300 km of you. Change both in Profile → Settings → Earthquake alerts. Very strong nearby earthquakes are marked Time Sensitive so they can break through Focus modes you allow; for the strongest ones close to you, you can also turn on Critical alerts (below).

What are Critical alerts?

An opt-in for strong earthquakes close to you. They are off until you turn them on in Profile → Settings → Earthquake alerts → Critical alerts; the app explains them first, then iOS asks for your permission. With them on, the first alert about an earthquake of magnitude 6.0 or more within 300 km of your area plays a sound even in Silent mode and Do Not Disturb, if it is sent within 30 minutes of the earthquake (later, it comes as a regular alert). Nothing else is sent as a critical alert: not later corrections of the same earthquake, not aftershocks (they update the Live Activity), not news or tests. Your area must come from your phone's location: without location access the app never sends a critical alert. Like every alert, it comes after an agency publishes the earthquake, not before the shaking. Turn them off in the app, or in iOS Settings → Notifications → The Shelter → Critical Alerts.

How does The Shelter know where I am?

If you allow location, your phone computes a roughly 40 km area; only that area is sent to our server, never your position. Your alert area is updated when you open the app (there is no background tracking). Without location access the server uses an approximate area derived from your network address; you then get alerts only for large earthquakes, and the Alerts screen says "Using an approximate network location".

Do I need an account?

No. The map, the news, videos, podcasts and alerts work without one. Signing in with Apple lets you publish felt reports ("Warn mates") under a display name and keeps your profile across devices.

What is public when I report shaking?

The intensity, the time, an area of about 1 km and your display name / tag. Your email and account ID are never shown.

How do I report an offensive name or a bad report?

Signed in, tap the report's pin on the map, then Report this (signed out, the app first asks you to sign in with Apple). For an earthquake, article, video or podcast use its … button → "Content complaint". We review every complaint, can hide reports and suspend or ban accounts, and display names are checked by a filter when they are chosen.

How do I block someone?

Signed in, tap their report's pin on the map and choose Block followed by their name (Block this person for a report without a name); the app offers it again after Report this. Their reports that carry their name are then hidden from your map; reports published without a name show no one's identity and stay as anonymous counts. Unblock them in Profile → Settings → Blocked people.

How do I delete my account?

Profile → Settings (the gear button) → Delete my profile. It signs you out everywhere, erases your public profile and anonymizes your reports immediately; signing in again within 30 days offers to restore the account, after that it is deleted permanently. See the privacy policy.

Alerts stopped arriving.

Check iOS Settings → Notifications → The Shelter, open the app once (it refreshes your registration and area), and make sure Low Data Mode or Focus settings are not holding the notifications back. If the Alerts screen shows "alerts may be delayed", our detection service is degraded — nothing to do on your side.

SOS does nothing.

SOS writes a text message to your emergency contacts (Profile → Settings → Emergency contacts) in Apple's Messages app, and you send it. It needs a device that can send text messages.

The app says "Update required".

That version can no longer receive a correct configuration. Update The Shelter from the App Store.

Privacy and terms

See the privacy policy and the terms of use. We do not show ads, do not track you and do not sell data.