The Sudoku Privacy Policy
A Sudoku puzzle game for Android, iPhone, iPad and the web by Gimma.
Other policies: Gimma studio and website · Tappy Flap · Woordzle
The short version
- We collect no personal data. Your games, stats and settings stay on your device.
- There are no accounts and no analytics. The only Gimma server checks whether a purchase was refunded, using the purchase's identifier only (see "Refund check").
- The Android and iOS apps show ads through Google AdMob: a short ad you can choose to watch for an extra hint, and a full-screen ad after every second finished game. Some of these ads are served by Unity Ads, Google's ad partner in the App. Google and Unity may collect device data for these ads, as explained below. Where the law requires it, you are asked for consent first and can change it any time in Settings. The web version has no ads.
- Purchases go through Google Play or the App Store. We never see your payment details.
- We do not sell your data.
This policy explains how The Sudoku ("the App") handles information on Android, iPhone and iPad, and in the web version.
1. Information the App keeps on your device
The App saves the following on your device only:
- your settings (language, light or dark mode, sound, vibration, highlights, screen light, input mode)
- your colour choices (app palette, board, numbers, completed digits, colourblind mode)
- your statistics, best times, and the list of your last 20 games
- the game you are playing, up to three unfinished games you set aside, and their checkpoints
- the seasonal theme switch (and its candle flame setting)
- which "Follow Gimma" buttons you already used, so the Gimma Squad colours unlock once you have used all four
- the product IDs of your purchases (theme packs, No ads) and the seasonal themes you were given as a gift, so they keep working if the save is lost
- how many games you finished since the last full-screen ad, so one is shown only after every second game
In the Android and iOS apps the save is kept twice on the device (in the web view's storage and in the App's own preferences), so it survives if the system clears one of them. In the web version it is kept in your browser's local storage. We do not receive any of this data.
Android's own backup and your iPhone or iPad backup (iCloud or computer) may include this game data. Google and Apple handle those backups under your device settings.
Purchases
Theme packs and No ads are sold and processed by Google Play (Android) or the App Store (iPhone and iPad). We never receive your payment card details, name or email address. The store tells the App which products your account owns, so the App can unlock them and restore them ("Restore Purchases" in the Shop).
Ads (Android, iPhone and iPad apps)
The apps show ads through Google AdMob. AdMob can choose to fill an ad from Unity Ads (Unity Technologies), its ad partner in the App ("mediation"). There are two kinds of ads:
- Hint ads: in a Classic or Custom game, once your free hints are used, you can choose to watch a short ad for one more hint. It only plays when you tap "Watch ad". The clock stops while it plays.
- Full-screen ads: after every second finished game, an ad may show when you leave the result screen. Ads never show during a game. The one-time "No ads" purchase in the Shop turns these off for good (the optional hint ads stay).
In the European Economic Area, the UK, Switzerland and other places where the law requires it, Google's consent form asks for your choice before ads are loaded. Your choice there also applies to Unity Ads. You can change your choice any time with "Ad privacy choices" in Settings › About.
To serve, measure and personalise ads (where you allow it), for analytics about their ad services, to prevent ad fraud and to comply with the law, the ad service that shows the ad (Google AdMob, or Unity Ads) may collect:
- the advertising ID (Android advertising ID, or on iPhone and iPad the IDFA only if you allow tracking), other device identifiers and an ad-service user ID
- your IP address, which gives an approximate location
- device and app information, such as make, model, operating system, language, screen size, connection type and app version
- how you interact with ads (only while an ad is shown, not your game) and whether in-app purchases were made
- crash, diagnostic and performance data from the ad software
- a report you send yourself about an ad, if you choose to report one
App Tracking Transparency (iPhone and iPad): before the first ad loads, iOS asks whether the App may use your device's advertising identifier for personalised ads. If you choose "Ask App Not to Track", ads are not personalised with it, and the game works the same. You can change this any time in the iOS Settings app under Privacy & Security, Tracking.
Gimma does not receive this ad data. Google and Unity handle it under their own policies (see section 4). The web version has no ads.
Refund check (Android, iPhone and iPad apps)
To check whether a purchase was refunded, the game sends the purchase identifiers (purchase token or transaction ID) of your in-app purchases to Gimma's own server. They are used only to check refunds, are not linked to your identity, and are not used for tracking or advertising. Apple and Google tell the server which purchases were refunded; the server keeps only those identifiers, the product and the date. The server stores no IP addresses, no device IDs and no account data. If you have bought nothing, nothing is sent.
Diagnostics
Your device, Google Play and the App Store may provide crash and performance reports. We do not add any analytics tools. If that changes, we will update this policy first.
2. What we do not collect
We do not ask for or collect your name, email address, phone number, contacts, photos or precise location. The App has no chat, no accounts and no content that players can post. Apart from the ad data Google AdMob and Unity Ads collect as described above, nothing about you leaves your device.
3. How information is used
- To run the game and remember your progress, settings and statistics on your device.
- To unlock and restore what you bought (theme packs, No ads) and the seasonal themes you were given.
- To unlock the Gimma Squad colours once you have used all four Follow Gimma buttons.
- To show ads to players aged 13 and older, including personalised ads where you allow it, and to measure how ads perform (done by Google AdMob and Unity Ads).
4. Services involved
We do not sell personal information. Only these services are involved, each under its own policy:
| Service | What it does | Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Google Play | Android download and updates, in-app purchases | Google Privacy Policy |
| Apple | iPhone and iPad download and updates, App Store purchases | Apple Privacy Policy |
| Google AdMob | Hint ads, full-screen ads and the ad consent form (Android and iOS apps only) | How Google uses data from apps |
| Unity Ads (Unity Technologies) | Some of the hint and full-screen ads, chosen by AdMob (Android and iOS apps only) | Unity's Game Player and App User Privacy Policy |
| Gimma refund server (refunds.gimma.net) | Checks whether a purchase was refunded, by its purchase identifier only (Android and iOS apps only) | This policy ("Refund check") |
The apps contain all their graphics and fonts. Apart from the stores, Google AdMob (and Unity Ads when it serves an ad) and Gimma's refund check, they connect to nothing else. The "Follow Gimma" buttons open Gimma's pages on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram and X in that service's own app or your browser, and only when you tap one. The App does not see whether you follow, and shares nothing with those services. Each service applies its own privacy policy.
5. Audience and children
The Sudoku is a puzzle game for players aged 13 and older. It is not directed at children under 13. The game itself collects no personal information from anyone, including children; the ads are set up for an audience aged 13 and older.
6. How long data is kept
- Game data stays on your device until you clear the App's storage, uninstall it, or (on the web) clear your browser's site data.
- Google and Apple keep purchase records under their own policies. Google AdMob and Unity Ads keep ad data under their own policies.
- Support emails are kept only as long as needed to help you, and deleted when you ask.
7. Your choices
- Statistics: erase them any time with "Reset stats" in Settings.
- Ad consent: change it any time with "Ad privacy choices" in Settings › About (shown where the law requires it).
- Tracking (iPhone and iPad): allow or deny tracking in the iOS Settings app under Privacy & Security, Tracking.
- Ads: hint ads only play when you choose to watch one. You can limit ad personalisation, or reset or delete your advertising ID, in your device's settings.
- Everything: clear the App's storage or uninstall it. Purchases stay with your Google or Apple account and come back with "Restore Purchases".
- Questions: email customersupport@gimma.net.
8. Delete your The Sudoku data
The Sudoku has no accounts and we hold no data about you, so there is nothing for us to delete. To remove the game data on your device, clear the App's storage or uninstall it. On the web, clear the site data for the game in your browser. To stop ads being linked to your device, reset or delete your advertising ID in your device's settings; Google AdMob handles its ad data under its own policy, and Unity Ads under Unity's Game Player and App User Privacy Policy, which explains how to ask Unity to access or delete it. If you emailed us, ask us to delete those emails at customersupport@gimma.net and we will do so within 30 days.
9. Security
Game data never leaves your device except through your own device backups and the stores' purchase systems, which use encryption. Google AdMob and Unity Ads send ad data over encrypted connections, and the refund check uses HTTPS.
10. International users
Google, Apple, Google AdMob and Unity Ads may process data outside your country under their own policies. Where the law gives you rights (for example under the GDPR or UK GDPR), you can contact us; you can also complain to your local data protection authority.
11. Changes
We may update this policy. When we do, the effective date at the top changes.
12. Contact
Ace7, Gimma (The Sudoku)
Email: customersupport@gimma.net
Website: gimma.net