beaconDB is a drop-in replacement for MLS, which uses the same format request that’s used by Mozilla’s Ichnaea.
The source code is available on Codeberg: https://codeberg.org/beacondb/beacondb
You can contribute to the project by using an app like NeoStumbler (GitHub) or Tower Collector (GitHub) to submit location reports. NeoStumbler does Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GSM, while Tower Collector can only do GSM cell towers. Both are FOSS and available on F-Droid.
It is also recommended by the GrapheneOS project: https://grapheneos.social/@GrapheneOS/112759509558471713
https://grapheneos.org/articles/positon-location-service
Just keep in mind that it’s still in relatively early development, which is why it really needs contributions.
No.
It is hard to have both; but not impossible. You can still be privacy friendly without sacrificing necessary functionality.
It will require that the “provider” of such a dataset constantly scrub, sanitize and remove data that would cause privacy hazards as quickly as reasonably possible however. That in and of itself is a technical challenge; though not impossible.
I disagree that location is necessary functionality.