Speciate — Privacy Policy
This privacy policy explains how Deslater ("Deslater Studios", the "Service Provider", "we") handles information in the Speciate mobile application (the "Application"). It is written to describe what the Application actually does, so that it matches our Google Play Data safety declaration.
1. Who is responsible for your data
Deslater is the data controller for the Application. You can reach us at any time at [email protected].
2. There is no account, and your progress stays on your device
Speciate is played against the game's own simulation. We want to be precise about what that means:
- No account, ever. There is no sign-up, no login, no email address, no username.
- We run no game servers. Deslater operates no backend for Speciate, so your gameplay is not sent to any system of ours.
- Your progress stays on your phone. Runs, creatures, scores, unlocks, daily challenges, collection entries and settings are written to your device's local storage only.
- No cloud save and no leaderboard. Your scores are yours; they are not uploaded, ranked, or shown to anyone else.
- Nothing you create is transmitted. The creatures you build and the boards you play are never sent anywhere.
If you uninstall the Application, that local data goes with it.
3. Analytics and crash reporting
To understand how the game is played and to fix what breaks, the Application uses two Google services. Neither of them receives your game content.
- Google Analytics for Firebase (GA4) records anonymous usage statistics — for example that the app was opened, that a run was started or finished, which screens were viewed, and general information such as app version, device model, operating system, language and country. These are counts tied to a randomly generated app-instance identifier, not to you as a person.
- Firebase Crashlytics reports crashes and serious errors so we can fix them. A report contains the technical error trace, the device model and operating system version, and the state of the app at the moment it failed, together with a Crashlytics installation identifier.
These services tell us things like "how far do players usually get" and "which build is crashing". They do not tell us who you are, and they never receive your creatures, your scores as personal records, or anything you type.
Because the Application also shows ads (section 4), Google may associate analytics data with advertising signals as described in its own policies. Where the law requires your consent for analytics, we ask for it before collecting, and you can change your mind at any time.
4. Advertising
The Application is supported by advertising supplied by Google AdMob. To select, deliver, cap and measure ads, Google may process:
- Your device's advertising identifier (on Android, the Advertising ID / GAID)
- Your device's IP address, from which an approximate, region-level location can be inferred
- Device and app information such as device model, operating system version, language, and the fact that the ad was requested by Speciate
- Ad interaction data — that an ad was shown, viewed, dismissed or tapped
This information goes to Google, not to us. We receive only aggregate revenue and performance reports, which do not identify you. Google's handling of it is described in the AdMob partner policies and the Google privacy & terms pages.
We do not sell your personal information, and we do not share your game data with advertisers — we have none to share.
5. Your choices
- In the EEA, the UK and Switzerland, you will be asked for consent before personalized ads and non-essential analytics are used, through Google's consent management platform. You may decline and still play the game in full; you will simply see non-personalized ads. You can reopen that choice at any time from the Application's settings.
- Anywhere, you can reset or delete your advertising identifier, or opt out of ad personalization entirely, in your device settings — on Android, Settings → Privacy → Ads.
- Non-personalized ads still involve a request to Google and still use coarse signals such as IP address and the app's own context, but they are not based on a profile of your interests.
6. Why we process this information, and our legal bases
Where the UK GDPR or EU GDPR applies:
- Consent — for personalized advertising, and for analytics where your country requires consent for it. Requested through the prompt described above, and withdrawable at any time.
- Legitimate interests — for non-personalized ads, frequency capping, ad-fraud prevention, crash reporting, and understanding in aggregate how the game is played, so that we can keep it working and offer it without charge. We use the minimum data necessary.
- Legal obligation — where we must retain or disclose information to comply with applicable law.
7. Who we share information with
We use three Google services and nothing else:
- Google AdMob — advertising. How Google uses data from apps that use its services
- Google Analytics for Firebase — anonymous usage statistics. Privacy information
- Firebase Crashlytics — crash reports. Privacy information
There are no other SDKs, attribution partners, social networks, or data brokers in the Application. We may disclose information where we are legally required to do so, or where we believe in good faith that it is necessary to protect our rights or the safety of any person.
8. International data transfers
Google processes advertising, analytics and crash data on infrastructure located in a number of countries, which may be outside the United Kingdom and the European Economic Area. Where the law requires safeguards for such transfers, Google relies on mechanisms including Standard Contractual Clauses approved by the European Commission and the UK International Data Transfer Addendum.
9. How long information is kept
- Your game data — kept on your device for as long as the Application is installed, and removed when you uninstall it. We never hold a copy.
- Analytics events — retained by Google Analytics for Firebase for up to 14 months, then deleted automatically. Aggregate reports built from them may be kept longer.
- Crash reports — retained by Firebase Crashlytics for approximately 90 days.
- Advertising data — retained by Google according to its own schedules, described in the Google policies linked above. We hold no copy of the underlying data.
- Aggregate revenue reports — retained by us for accounting purposes. These contain no information that identifies you.
10. Deleting your data
Speciate has no accounts, so there is no account to delete, and no profile of yours on any system of ours.
- To erase your game progress, clear the Application's data in your device settings, or uninstall the Application.
- To break the link to advertising and analytics, reset or delete your advertising identifier in your device settings, and withdraw consent where you were asked for it. Reinstalling the Application also generates a new app-instance identifier.
- To ask us to delete analytics or crash data associated with your installation, email [email protected]. Tell us roughly when and on what device you played, and we will make the deletion request to Google.
11. Your rights
Depending on where you live, you may have rights to access, correct, delete, restrict or port your personal information, to object to processing based on legitimate interests, and to withdraw consent. To exercise them, contact [email protected]. You also have the right to complain to your local data protection authority — in the UK, the Information Commissioner's Office; in the EEA, your national supervisory authority.
Because the advertising, analytics and crash data are held by Google rather than by us, requests concerning them may need to be directed to Google; we will tell you if that is the case and point you to the right place.
12. US state privacy rights
If you are a resident of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Virginia, Utah, or another US state with comprehensive privacy legislation, you have the right to know what personal information is collected, to access and delete it, to correct it, and to opt out of its sale or sharing, of targeted advertising, and of profiling.
We do not sell personal information for money. Some US state laws treat advertising that uses an advertising identifier as "sharing" or "targeted advertising" — you can opt out at any time by disabling ad personalization or deleting your advertising identifier in your device settings, as described in section 5. We will not treat you differently for exercising any of these rights.
13. Children
The Application is not directed to children and is not intended for anyone under 13 years of age, or such higher minimum age as applies in your country. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13.
If you are a parent or guardian and believe your child has used the Application, contact [email protected] and we will make a deletion request for the associated analytics and crash data. Clearing the app's data or uninstalling it removes everything the child created on the device.
14. Security
Game data is held in your device's own application storage, protected by the operating system's app sandbox. All communication with Google's advertising, analytics and crash-reporting services is encrypted in transit using HTTPS/TLS. Since we operate no servers for Speciate and hold no database of player information, there is no store of ours that could be breached.
15. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy from time to time — for example if Speciate later gains online features or cloud saves. We will post the updated version on this page with a new effective date, and where the change is material we will give notice in the Application before it takes effect. Previous versions are available on request.
16. Contact us
Deslater Studios
Email: [email protected]
Web: deslater.com/contact