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Privacy Policy

TV Guessbox · Effective 29 October 2026

1. Who we are

TV Guessbox is run by Joe Church, who is the data controller for the personal data described here. You can contact us about anything in this policy at [email protected].

2. What this covers

This policy covers the TV Guessbox app for iOS and Android and its web version. It explains what personal data we collect, why, who can see it, how long we keep it, and the rights you have over it. It is written to meet UK data protection law (the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018) and applies to you wherever you play.

3. What we collect

When you play as a guest

• A random guest ID. The first time you open the app, our sign-in provider (Google Firebase) creates an anonymous ID for your device. It isn't linked to your name, email or phone number.
• A display name. The app gives you a random name such as "NeonSleuth47", which your opponents see.
• Your game data, described under "Your progress" below, stored against that guest ID.

When you create an account

• Your Google account email address and Google account ID, which Google shares with us when you choose "Continue with Google". We use them only to sign you in and to contact you about your account if we need to. We don't receive your Google password.
• The username you pick and the four-digit tag we add to it (for example Name#1234).
• When your account was created and when you last used the app.

Your progress

• Your matches: the guesses you make, the hints you take and each result.
• Your coin balance and a record of the coins you earn and spend.
• The player icons, frames and name plates you unlock, and which ones you have on.
• Your level and XP in each game, and the achievements you've collected.

Friends and invites

• Your friends list, and the friend requests and match invites you send and receive.
• Whether you are online right now. While you have the app open and are signed in, it tells our server every so often that you're active.

Purchases

Coin packs aren't on sale yet. When they are, payment will be handled entirely by Apple (App Store) or Google (Google Play). We will never see your card or bank details: we only receive confirmation of what you bought, which we keep so that your purchase stays on your account.

Technical information

• Like any online service, our server receives your device's IP address and basic request details (such as the time and the page or feature requested) each time the app talks to it. These may be kept in server logs.

What we don't collect or do

• We don't show ads and don't use advertising IDs.
• We don't use analytics, tracking or crash-reporting tools, and we don't track you across other apps or websites.
• We don't access your location, contacts, photos, camera or microphone.
• We don't sell or rent your personal data to anyone.

4. Why we use it, and our legal basis

5. What other players can see

• Your opponent in a match sees your display name or Name#1234 tag, the icon, frame and name plate you have on, and your guesses and hints in that match.
• Your friends see your Name#1234 tag, whether you're online, and when you were last active. Someone you have a pending friend request with can see the same.
• Anyone who knows your Name#1234 tag can send you a friend request.
• Other players never see your email address.

6. Services we use

We share data with these providers only so far as they need it to run their part of the app:

• Google Firebase Authentication creates your guest ID and handles Google sign-in. Google processes your sign-in details, including your email address and IP address. See Firebase's privacy information.
• Cloudflare hosts our server, and the data described above is stored in the United Kingdom. Like any network provider, Cloudflare handles the connection between your device and our server, including your IP address, and may route that traffic through its data centres outside the UK. See Cloudflare's privacy policy.
• TMDB (The Movie Database) and IGDB supply the posters, covers and artwork in the game. Your device loads these images directly from their servers, which receive your IP address as a result.
• YouTube plays the trailer and theme-music hints. When one plays, your device connects to YouTube, which receives your IP address and may set its own cookies, under Google's privacy policy.
• Google Fonts and jsDelivr deliver the app's fonts and one animation library, and receive your IP address when they do.

7. What's stored on your device

The app keeps a few things in your device's own storage: your sign-in session, your guest ID, and small preferences such as whether the "How it works" guide is open. These are needed for the app to work and aren't used to track you. Uninstalling the app, or clearing its storage, removes them.

8. How long we keep it

• Accounts and everything stored with them (progress, coins, items, friends) are kept until you delete your account.
• Match details (the guesses and hints in a match) are deleted automatically 24 hours after the match. The result itself stays in your coin and XP history.
• Guest data stays on our server under your anonymous guest ID. Because that ID isn't linked to you, we can't find or delete it on request unless you can tell us your guest ID. Uninstalling the app means you can no longer reach that data, and it can't be linked to you.
• Matchmaking queue entries are deleted within minutes.
• Server logs are kept for up to 365 days, then deleted.
• Purchase records, once purchases are on sale, may be kept for up to six years after a purchase where tax and accounting law requires it.

9. Deleting your account

You can delete your account at any time inside the app: tap your initial at the top of the screen, then Delete account. This permanently deletes your account and sign-in, your coins, purchases, items, levels, achievements, friends and invites. A match you're playing at the time is forfeited, and your name is removed from it. It can't be undone. If you can't get into the app, email us at [email protected] from your account's email address and we'll delete it for you.

10. Your rights

You have the right to:

• get a copy of the personal data we hold about you
• have inaccurate data corrected
• have your data deleted
• object to, or ask us to restrict, how we use your data
• receive your data in a portable format

To use any of these rights, email [email protected]. We'll reply within one month. If you're unhappy with how we've handled your data, you can complain to the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ico.org.uk) or your local data protection authority, though we'd appreciate the chance to put it right first.

11. Children

TV Guessbox isn't intended for children under 13, and we don't knowingly collect personal data from them. If you believe a child under 13 has created an account, contact us and we'll delete it. Anyone under 18 needs a parent or guardian's permission to make a purchase.

12. Security

Data travels between the app and our server over an encrypted connection. Your identity is checked with a secure sign-in token on every request, so no one can act on your account by pretending to be you. No system is perfectly secure, but if a breach affecting your data ever happens, we'll tell you and the regulator where the law requires it.

13. International transfers

Our own server and its data are in the UK. Some of our providers, including Google and Cloudflare, may process data outside the UK, for example in the United States. Where they do, they rely on the safeguards UK law requires, such as the UK–US data bridge or standard contractual clauses.

14. Changes to this policy

If we change this policy we'll update the date at the top. If a change affects you significantly, such as a new kind of data or a new use for it, we'll tell you in the app before it takes effect.

15. Contact

Questions or requests about your data: [email protected]