Privacy Policy

AeroSpottle ("we", "us", or "our") operates the website at aerospottle.xyz. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and your rights regarding your data. By using AeroSpottle you agree to the practices described below.

1. Information We Collect

Account information — When you create an account we collect your email address and the username you choose. These are stored securely via Google Firebase.

Gameplay data — We store your game statistics (games played, wins, streaks), guess history, earned badges, card inventory, and leaderboard entries so you can track your progress over time.

Profile content — If you write a profile bio (a Pro feature), that text is stored in our database.

Payment information — If you subscribe to AeroSpottle Pro, your payment is processed by Stripe. We never see or store your card number. We do store your Stripe customer ID, subscription status, plan, and renewal date so we know your account is active.

Technical data — Your IP address is temporarily read when you initiate a checkout session to prevent abuse. It is not stored in our database.

Browser storage — We use localStorage to remember whether you have seen the onboarding guide, and sessionStorage to store a temporary maintenance-mode bypass flag. Firebase Auth also stores your login session in localStorage. None of this data leaves your device.

2. How We Use Your Information

• To create and manage your account
• To display your stats, streak, badges, and leaderboard rank
• To process Pro subscription payments and confirm your access level
• To enforce our Terms of Service (e.g. detecting cheating or abuse)
• To send you a verification email when you sign up
• To contact you if you reach out to us for support

We do not sell your personal data. We do not use your data for advertising.

3. Third-Party Services

We use the following third-party services that may process your data:

• Google Firebase (Firebase Authentication and Cloud Firestore) — handles account login and stores your game data. Governed by Google's Privacy Policy.
• Stripe — processes subscription payments. Governed by Stripe's Privacy Policy.
• Google Fonts — fonts are loaded from Google's CDN. Google's servers receive your IP address as part of this request.
• Vercel — our hosting provider. Vercel may log request metadata (IP, URL, timestamp) for infrastructure purposes.

4. Data Retention

Your account and associated data are retained for as long as your account is active. If you delete your account, we delete your authentication record, profile, stats, badges, card inventory, username reservation, and subscription record. Some data may persist in our infrastructure backups for a short period before being fully purged.

5. Children's Privacy

AeroSpottle is intended for users aged 13 and older. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child under 13 has created an account, please contact us and we will delete it promptly.

If you are located in the European Economic Area, you must be at least 16 years old to use AeroSpottle, unless your country's law permits a lower age with parental consent.

6. Your Rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:

• Access the personal data we hold about you
• Request correction of inaccurate data
• Request deletion of your account and associated data
• Object to certain processing of your data

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at the address below. You can also delete your account directly from your profile page, which will trigger immediate deletion of your data.

7. Security

We use industry-standard practices to protect your data, including Firebase's built-in security rules, encrypted connections (HTTPS), and server-side verification for sensitive operations. However, no system is completely secure. Please use a strong, unique password for your account.

8. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will update the effective date at the top of this page. Continued use of AeroSpottle after a change constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

9. Contact