GridPatch – Privacy Policy

1. Overview

KK StudioX ("we", "us", or "our") built GridPatch (the "App") as a free-to-play mobile puzzle game supported by advertising. This Privacy Policy explains what information is collected, how it is used, and your choices regarding that information.

By installing or using the App you agree to the practices described in this policy. If you do not agree, please uninstall the App.

2. Information We Collect

2a. Information Collected Automatically

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Anonymous User ID

A randomly generated anonymous identifier (Firebase Anonymous Auth UID) is created when you first launch the App. This ID is not linked to your name, email, or any personally identifiable information (PII).
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Gameplay Data

Puzzle completion times, difficulty level, daily streak count, and score data are stored locally on your device and, for leaderboard entries, uploaded to our Firebase Firestore database under your anonymous ID.
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Achievement Data

Daily Challenge medal counts (Gold, Silver, Bronze), streak milestone badge counts, and streak freeze balance are stored locally on your device only. This data is not linked to your identity and is deleted when you uninstall the App.
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Device & App Diagnostics

Firebase may collect crash reports, performance data, and general device information (OS version, app version) to help us improve stability. No precise location data is collected.
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Advertising Data (AdMob)

Google AdMob collects your device's advertising identifier (GAID on Android / IDFA on iOS), IP address, and general location inferred from IP to serve relevant ads and measure ad performance. See Section 4 for details.

2b. Information You Provide

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Display Name

If you choose to set a custom display name, that name is stored locally on your device and may appear on the public leaderboard alongside your puzzle time. Do not use your real name or any sensitive information as your display name.
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Referral / Invite Code

If you tap "Share App", a short invite code derived from your anonymous user ID is registered in our Firestore database. This code is not linked to any personally identifiable information. If a new player enters your code, a temporary claim record is stored until the streak freeze is collected, after which it is permanently deleted.

3. How We Use Your Information

To provide core gameplay: saving your progress, best times, and daily streak locally.
To operate the global leaderboard: your anonymous ID, display name, and completion time are stored in Firestore so other players can see rankings.
To power the invite system: if you share the app, your invite code is stored in Firestore solely to credit you with a streak freeze when a friend installs and enters your code.
To improve the App: aggregated, anonymised crash and performance data helps us fix bugs.
To serve and measure advertisements: advertising identifiers are passed to Google AdMob to show you relevant ads and measure whether ads are effective.
We do not sell your personal data to third parties.

4. Third-Party Services

The App integrates the following third-party services. Each has its own privacy policy governing how it handles data:

Google Firebase

Firebase Authentication (Anonymous), Cloud Firestore

Anonymous sign-in; storing leaderboard and daily puzzle data; referral invite codes and temporary claim records (deleted automatically after a streak freeze is collected).

Google AdMob

Banner Ads, Interstitial Ads, Rewarded Ads

Displaying advertisements to support the free app. AdMob may use your advertising ID and device information to personalise ads.

Google Fonts (Poppins)

Font rendering

Fonts may be downloaded from Google servers at runtime. Standard Google Privacy Policy applies.

5. Advertising & Your Choices

AdMob may serve personalised ads based on your interests and browsing history across apps. You can opt out of personalised advertising at any time:

Android: Settings → Google → Ads → "Opt out of Ads Personalisation"
iOS: Settings → Privacy & Security → Tracking → disable tracking for GridPatch

You may also reset your advertising identifier at any time in your device settings. Opting out does not remove ads — it means ads will be less relevant to your interests.

6. Data Retention & Deletion

Local data (best times, streaks, saved games) is stored on your device and deleted when you uninstall the App.
Leaderboard entries in Firestore are retained while the App is active. You may request deletion by contacting us (see Section 9).
Referral invite codes in Firestore are retained for as long as the App is active. Temporary referral claim records are deleted automatically as soon as the referrer collects their streak freeze.
Anonymous auth UIDs in Firebase are retained until the associated account is deleted. Uninstalling the App does not automatically delete the Firebase record; contact us to request removal.
AdMob data retention is governed by Google's own policies.

7. Children's Privacy

The App is rated for ages 3+ and does not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 (or equivalent minimum age in your jurisdiction). We use only anonymous identifiers and do not ask for names, email addresses, or other PII. All ads served comply with Google's policies for family-safe apps.

If you believe a child has provided personal information to the App, please contact us immediately so we can delete it.

8. Data Security

We use industry-standard measures to protect your data:

Firebase services use Google's infrastructure which is encrypted in transit (TLS) and at rest.
No sensitive PII is collected or stored by us directly.
Local device data is protected by your device's own security mechanisms.

No method of transmission or storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security.

9. Your Rights (GDPR / CCPA)

Depending on your location, you may have rights including:

Access: Request a copy of the data we hold about you.
Deletion: Request deletion of your anonymous leaderboard data.
Correction: Update your display name via the Profile screen at any time.
Opt-out of ad personalisation: Via device settings (Section 5).
Portability: Request your data in a portable format.

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at the address in Section 10. Since we only store anonymous identifiers, we may ask for your anonymous UID (visible in Firebase console) to locate your records.

10. Contact Us

If you have questions, concerns, or data-deletion requests regarding this Privacy Policy, please contact:

KK StudioX
Email: kkstudioxpvtltd@gmail.com

We aim to respond within 30 days.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Material changes will be notified via an in-app notice. Your continued use of the App after any change constitutes acceptance of the updated policy. The effective date at the top of this page indicates when the policy was last revised.