Privacy Policy

Last updated: July 16, 2026

Overview

Root Word ("the App") is a word puzzle game developed by Andrew Murphy. We do not ask for your name, email, phone number, contacts, photos, or location. We do not require an account. This policy explains the limited data the App does collect, the third-party services it uses, and your choices.

Data Stored Locally on Your Device

The following data is stored on your device only and never leaves it:

• Game progress (puzzles completed, scores, streaks, mastery progress)
• User preferences (sound, haptics, dark mode, theme, display settings)
• Discovered words and their definitions
• Forest and plant growth state

Anonymous Identifier

On first launch the App generates a random anonymous identifier (a UUID such as e7a4b1c2-...) and stores it on your device. This identifier is not linked to your name, email, account, advertising ID, or any other personal information. It is used so that the small amount of data we transmit (see below) can be associated with a single install rather than tied to you personally. If you uninstall the App, the identifier is deleted along with all local data.

Data Transmitted to Third-Party Services

The App uses the following third-party services. Each receives only the data described below.

Sentry (crash reporting)

If the App crashes or hits an unexpected error, a technical report is sent to Sentry. This report includes the stack trace, device type, OS version, and app version. It does not include your name, email, gameplay data, or the anonymous identifier described above.

Provider: Functional Software, Inc. (Sentry). Privacy policy: https://sentry.io/privacy/

PostHog (product analytics)

The App sends two anonymous event types to PostHog so we can understand how the App is used in aggregate:

• app_first_open — fired once, the first time the App is launched.
• puzzle_completed — fired when a puzzle is completed. Includes the theme name, whether it was a tutorial or mastery puzzle, completion time, streak count, bonus words found, and a flag for first-time completion. No words you typed, no personal information.

These events are associated with a PostHog-generated anonymous device ID, not with your identity.

Provider: PostHog, Inc. Privacy policy: https://posthog.com/privacy

Google AdMob (advertising)

The App shows occasional interstitial ads and optional rewarded video ads through Google AdMob. AdMob may collect and process device information (including your device's advertising identifier — IDFA on iOS, Advertising ID on Android), IP address, and ad interaction data in order to serve and measure ads.

• European Economic Area, UK, and Switzerland: You will be shown a consent form (via Google's User Messaging Platform) on first launch, where you can accept or reject personalised advertising.
• Apple iOS (all regions): Apple's App Tracking Transparency prompt will ask whether the App may track you across apps and websites. If you decline, you will still see ads, but they will be non-personalised.
• All users: You can reset or change your advertising identifier at any time in your device's system settings.

Provider: Google LLC. Privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy

Firebase Firestore (real-tree planting feature)

The App includes a feature in which we plant a real tree on behalf of the player base when in-game milestones are reached. To do this fairly, the App writes one record to a Firebase Firestore database each time a tree-planting milestone is reached. Each record contains:

• The anonymous install identifier described above
• A timestamp for when the milestone was reached
• The in-game plant count at that moment
• The app version and platform (iOS or Android)

No personal information is included. The App also increments a public, aggregate counter that displays the total number of trees the community has earned. No individual user data is exposed by this counter.

Provider: Google LLC (Firebase). Privacy policy: https://firebase.google.com/support/privacy

Firebase Firestore (weekly leaderboard)

The App includes an optional weekly community leaderboard. Participation is entirely opt-in: nothing described in this section is collected unless you choose to join by picking a display name. If you join, the App stores the following in Firebase Firestore:

• Your chosen display name, which is visible to all players on the leaderboard
• Your weekly puzzle score (growth points earned that week)
• The anonymous install identifier described above (never shown publicly — the public leaderboard identifies entries only by a non-reversible code)
• The app version and platform (iOS or Android)

Display names pass through an automated content filter before appearing publicly, and any player can report or hide a name directly in the App; reported names are replaced promptly. Please do not use your real name or any other personal information as your display name. You can change your display name, and scores reset, every week.

Provider: Google LLC (Firebase). Privacy policy: https://firebase.google.com/support/privacy

Permissions the App May Request

• Notifications (optional) — to send gentle daily-puzzle reminders if you opt in. You can decline or revoke at any time in system settings.
• App Tracking Transparency (iOS only) — to request permission for personalised ads. Declining does not disable the App.

The App does not request access to your camera, microphone, contacts, photos, or location.

Children's Privacy

The App is rated 13+ on the App Store and does not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. The third-party services above (Sentry, PostHog, AdMob, Firebase) receive only the anonymous, technical data described in this policy and no information that identifies a child personally.

Data Sharing & Sale

We do not sell user data. We share data only with the third-party service providers listed above, and only for the purposes described. We do not share data with any other parties.

Data Retention

Data stored on your device is retained until you delete the App. Anonymous events sent to PostHog, crash reports sent to Sentry, tree-event and leaderboard records in Firestore, and ad-serving data with AdMob are retained according to each provider's own retention policies (linked above).

Your Rights & Choices

• Delete all data: uninstalling the App deletes all locally stored data, including the anonymous identifier.
• Opt out of personalised ads: decline the App Tracking Transparency prompt (iOS) or use the in-system "limit ad tracking" / "delete advertising ID" controls on iOS and Android.
• Leave the leaderboard or change your name: you can change your leaderboard display name at any time in the App, and weekly scores expire on their own each week.
• Request access or deletion of remote records: email the address below with the anonymous identifier shown in the App's settings, and we will delete the matching records (including any leaderboard entries) from Firestore on request.

Changes to This Policy

If we make material changes to this privacy policy, the updated version will be made available at this URL with a new "Last updated" date.

Contact

If you have questions about this privacy policy, please contact us at:

rootwordapp@gmail.com