Privacy policy

Who we are

Spotlings is a puzzle game for iPhone made by Daniel Nguyen, an independent developer. In this policy, "we" and "us" mean Daniel Nguyen. This policy covers the Spotlings app. You can reach us at h.danieln96@gmail.com.

What we collect: anonymous gameplay statistics

While you play, the game records short notes about what happens in the game and sends them to our analytics service, PostHog. We use them to see which levels are too hard or too easy, which features people use, and to find and fix crashes.

The random ID

The first time you open the game, your phone makes a random ID (a long string of letters and numbers). It is not made from your name, your Apple Account, your phone number or any device identifier, and it is not linked to any of them. It stays on your phone and is sent with each note, so we can tell that notes came from the same install without knowing who you are. The game also makes a new random number each time it starts, to group the notes from one play session.

What each note contains

• The game's name and version number, and that it is the iPhone version.
• The date and time of the event.
• What happened in the game, such as:
  • the game was opened (and whether it is the first time);
  • a level was started or finished: level number, try number, difficulty, board size, win or loss, time taken, stars and hints used;
  • mistakes made, hints and pet powers used, and the "keep going" choice after running out of hearts;
  • a new pet was hatched (which pet and its rarity), or a different pet was picked as your avatar;
  • a setting was changed (sound, music, vibration, Auto ✕, motion, daily reminder), including whether the daily reminder is now on;
  • whether signing in to Game Center worked, and, when you open the rankings screen, which list you viewed, your rank number on it and how many players it has;
  • the privacy policy or help page was opened from Settings.
• Technical error reports if something goes wrong: a short error message, the name of the game's code file and line, and a short code trace (with web addresses removed), and notes if the saved game could not be read.

We do not send your device model, iOS version, device identifiers, or anything you type, because the game has no text input.

How it is sent

Notes are sent in small batches every few seconds over an encrypted (HTTPS) connection. If you are offline, they wait on your phone and are sent the next time you are online. Like any website you visit, PostHog's servers can see the internet (IP) address of the connection when a batch arrives. We don't use it to identify anyone. PostHog may use it to estimate a rough location, such as your country; we don't collect your precise location.

The game currently has no switch to turn these statistics off. Deleting the app stops them and deletes the random ID from your phone.

What we do not collect

• Your name, email address, phone number or Apple Account details.
• Your contacts, photos, camera, microphone or files.
• Your precise location (GPS).
• The advertising identifier (IDFA). We don't track you across other companies' apps or websites, so the game never asks for tracking permission.
• Chat messages or anything else you write. The game has no chat and no user content.

There are no ads in the current version of Spotlings. We do not sell or rent any data, and we don't share it for advertising.

Your progress stays on your phone

Your levels, stars, pets and settings are saved only on your phone. We don't have a copy. If you delete the app, your progress is deleted too. Your iPhone's own backups (iCloud or a computer) may include it.

Game Center (Apple)

The rankings use Apple's Game Center. Using it is optional; the game works without it.

• What the game sends to Apple when you are signed in to Game Center: the highest level you have won, the number of pets you have collected, and a small number that says which pet is your avatar (and how many pets you own), so rankings can show pet faces instead of photos.
• What other players can see: your Game Center nickname, these scores, your rank and your avatar pet.
• Friends: the Friends list only appears if you allow Spotlings to see your Game Center friends. iOS asks you first, and you can say no.
• Your control: you can sign out of Game Center, change your nickname, or change friends access in your iPhone's Settings app, under Game Center.

The game shows other players' nicknames and scores on the rankings screen, but we don't store them or send them to our analytics. Game Center is run by Apple under Apple's privacy policy.

Purchases

If Spotlings offers in-app purchases, they are handled entirely by Apple through the App Store. We never see your name, your Apple Account or your payment details. Apple tells the game what was bought (the item and a transaction number) so it can be unlocked on your phone, and our anonymous statistics may note that a purchase happened, which item and its price. Refunds and billing are handled by Apple under Apple's privacy policy.

Notifications

The daily reminder is optional and off until you turn it on in the game's Settings. iOS asks for your permission the first time. Reminders are local notifications: they are planned and shown by your phone itself, using the names of your own pets, and are not sent from a server. You can turn them off in the game's Settings or in your iPhone's Settings app, under Notifications.

Children

Spotlings is made for a general audience and is suitable for all ages, so children may play it. We have designed the game to collect as little as possible from everyone:

• We don't knowingly collect personal information from children. The game never asks for a name, email, age or photo, and has no chat.
• The gameplay statistics are anonymous and are used only to run and improve the game, never to contact anyone, build advertising profiles or show ads.
• Parents and guardians are welcome to contact us at h.danieln96@gmail.com with questions, or to ask us to delete statistics.

Because nothing in the statistics identifies a person, and the random ID isn't shown in the game, we usually have no way to find which statistics came from your child's phone. The simplest way to reset it is to delete the app: that deletes the random ID, and a new, unrelated one is made if the game is installed again. The old statistics can no longer be connected to the phone and are deleted when they reach the end of the retention period below.

How long we keep data

We keep the anonymous gameplay statistics for up to 12 months, then they are deleted. We may keep totals and summaries that contain no ID at all (for example "40% of players finished level 10") for longer.

Security

Statistics are sent over encrypted connections and stored with PostHog, which runs the service for us. Access to them is limited to us. No system is perfectly secure, but because we collect so little, and nothing that identifies you, there is very little that could be exposed.

Where data is stored

PostHog stores the statistics on servers in the United States. If you live outside the United States, your anonymous statistics are sent there. Game Center and purchase data are handled by Apple under Apple's own policy.

Your choices and rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to ask what data we hold about you, to ask us to delete it, or to object to how we use it. To make a request, email h.danieln96@gmail.com. We will reply and help as far as we can. Because the statistics are anonymous, we may not be able to find the ones from your phone; deleting the app always resets the random ID.

Changes to this policy

If the game changes, for example if we add ads in a future version, we will update this policy before that version is released and change the date at the top. If a change is important, we may also mention it in the game or in the App Store release notes.

Contact

Daniel Nguyen, maker of Spotlings
Email: h.danieln96@gmail.com

Need help with the game itself? See the help and support page.