What the location is
When location is allowed, a phone can save the position where a photo was taken: latitude, longitude and an estimate of how close the reading is. On open ground that can be within a few metres. Inside a building, under a steel frame or between tall blocks it is usually much worse, because the phone has weaker signals to work with. The accuracy figure tells you how far to trust each one.
When it helps
| Use | Why location helps |
|---|---|
| Large or linear sites | Shows which part of a road, pipeline or estate the photo is from |
| External works and landscaping | Ties a photo to a place that has no room name |
| Disputes about where something was | A dated, located photo is good evidence |
| Inside a building | Less useful: a room name and a drawing reference beat a coordinate |
When to leave it out
Location in a photo can say more than you meant: where someone lives, where a vulnerable resident's flat is, or where valuable materials are stored. Before sending photos outside the team, decide whether the location goes with them. Many reports describe the place in words and keep the coordinates in the working file only.
Location is personal data when it relates to an identifiable person, so the same data protection care applies as for any other record about people.
In Note Metric
Survey photos keep where they were taken only while the survey's camera is open and you have allowed location, with how close the reading was, and their moment in the recording; the survey draft gives where each photo was taken. Location access is controlled in the iPhone's own settings, and Note Metric works without it. When a walk-round goes on to Report Metric, a photo's place is shown to the reviewer in the app and is never printed in the report.
Questions
Is the time on a photo reliable?
The time comes from the phone's clock, which is normally set by the network. It is usually reliable; a photo's time and its place in the recording together are stronger than either alone.
Can someone edit a photo's location?
Yes, with the right tools. That is why a photo's moment in a recording, and the original kept unchanged, matter as evidence.
Should I switch location off on site?
That depends on your firm's policy and the job. For external works it is usually useful; for occupied homes, think about who sees the photos.
Sources
- Apple Support, Control the location information you share on iPhone: location services, precise location and which apps can use it
- ICO, The right to be informed: telling people what personal data you collect and why
- ICO, Principle (e): Storage limitation: keeping personal data no longer than necessary
Our summaries of these documents are not their wording: read the source before relying on it. This guide is general information, not legal advice for a particular case. Note Metric and AI Metric Ltd are not affiliated with or endorsed by any body named here.