Privacy Policy – Groundbound

Effective 5 October 2026. This policy covers the game Groundbound in all versions: Android app (Google Play), iOS/iPadOS app (App Store) and the web version at groundbound.fun.

1. Who we are

Controller: Jaroslav Knápek, sole trader, Czech Republic, publishing as Tactical Pigeon Studios. Privacy contact: support@groundbound.fun.

2. What data we process, how and why

Saved game and settings (progress, machines, volume, language, controls) are created by the game and stored on your device. They reach our server only if you use an account (see below) or as part of an error report when a save fails to load.
Optional account: your e-mail, password (stored only as a scrypt hash, never readable), creation date, whether the e-mail is confirmed, and sign-in tokens (stored only as hashes). You enter them when you create an account in the game (Menu → Account). They let you play on several devices and keep your purchases. The e-mail is used only to confirm the account and reset the password; we never send marketing e-mails. Kept on our server until you delete the account.
Game saved to the account (same content as the save on your device), uploaded only while you are signed in, so you can continue on another device. Kept until you delete the account.
Friend invites: your invite code, who invited whom and when, and a hash of the invited friend's random device key. Created when you open Invite friends with an account or enter a friend's code. Used for the invite rewards and against abuse (one device = one friend). The friend who invited you sees only the first two letters of your e-mail, whether your e-mail is confirmed and the tutorial finished, your number of achievements and play time, nothing else. When you open an invite link, we keep a hash of your IP address (not the address itself) together with the code for 48 hours, so the code fills itself in when you then install the app or open the game in another browser; it is deleted after 48 hours. The rest is kept until you delete the account.
Discord gift: the code our Discord bot sent you, your Discord user ID and name; when you enter the code in the game, also when, the random game ID, a hash of the random device key and your game account if you are signed in. Created when you join our Discord server or ask for the code there, and when you enter it in the game. Used for the gift (Gaming Chair) and against abuse: a code works only for the player who entered it first. We also use the link between the code and the game for community statistics. Kept on our server until you ask us to delete it.
Messages from the characters (notifications): the address for delivering notifications to your device (a token from Google, Apple or your browser), the game language, the topics (shop, new version), the random player ID and when we last sent you one. Only if you say yes to a character in the game and then allow notifications in the system. Used to tell you about new stock, a sale or a new version of the game, at most once a week, nothing else. You can switch them off any time in the game's Settings or in your phone's / browser's settings; we then stop using the token and delete it within 30 days.
Purchase records: the Stripe payment ID, what was bought and who it belongs to (the account, or a hash of a random device key). Used to credit a purchase only to the buyer, exactly once, and to move it to an account. After an account is deleted, only a record without any link to you remains, so the payment can't be credited again.
Error reports and diagnostics: error message, stack trace, game screen and position, game version, browser/device type, language, screen size, a random install ID and country (from the Cloudflare header); rarely a copy of a save that failed to load. Sent automatically when an error happens, used only to find and fix bugs so nobody loses progress. Deleted automatically after 14 days.
Leaderboard (speedrun): a nickname you choose yourself, your play time until the rocket launch (computed from the gameplay statistics below) and the launch date. The time is created when you launch the rocket; you enter the nickname yourself (Menu → Leaderboard). Shown publicly to all players in the game: only the nickname (or “Unknown pilot”), the time and the date, nothing else. Kept on our server; change or clear the nickname any time, or ask support@groundbound.fun to remove you from the board.
Gameplay statistics: a random install ID, when and how long you play, time on each screen, game progress (achievements, expeditions, places found, bolts, number of plan slots), a hash of the random device key (to match plan slots with purchases), game version, smoothness (FPS), browser and device details (model, OS, graphics chip, memory, CPU cores, screen, storage quota, battery, connection type, input method), language, time zone, where you came from, your IP address and the approximate location (country, region, city) and internet provider derived from it (DB-IP database). Sent while you play, used to learn how many people play and what to improve. Stored on our server only, never shared or sold.
Detailed gameplay recording: what you press in the game (keys and touch buttons, never text you type into fields), screen changes, edits to your machine in the editor, the machine's in-game position, speed and state about once a second, game events (items picked up, expeditions, achievements, wrecks), errors, smoothness (FPS), game version, operating system, a random install ID and country. Sent while you play, in batches about once a minute, and used to find and fix bugs (for example a control that gets stuck) and to improve the game based on how it is actually played. Stored on our server only, never shared or sold, and kept as long as we need it for fixing and improving the game.
Technical connection data (IP address and the country, city and provider derived from it, browser/device type, browser language, referring page, the page visited, request time) is sent automatically by your device when it downloads pages and game files from our website. It is used to deliver the files, to protect the service from attacks and abuse, and to count visits and tell people from bots. Page visit records are deleted after 180 days.
Payments (web version only): you enter payment details directly on Stripe's checkout page. We never see them. Our server does not store payments; it only checks with Stripe that the payment succeeded. Your device keeps the payment ID so the bolts are not credited twice.

The game requires no account; an account is optional. Apart from the e-mail of an optional account, it does not collect names, phone numbers, location, contacts, photos, microphone data or advertising identifiers. It contains no ads. The Google Play and App Store apps contain no third-party analytics or tracking SDKs. On the groundbound.fun, groundbound.jk9.eu and jk9.eu websites, Google Analytics runs only if you allow it in the bar at the bottom (see below). We do not sell data or use it for profiling or targeted advertising. The Google Play and App Store versions do not offer Stripe purchases.

Google Analytics (website only, only with consent). If you choose Allow in the “This website uses cookies.” bar, Google Analytics 4 loads and sets _ga cookies (up to 2 years). Google then learns where you came from, which pages you saw and for how long, your approximate location, device and browser type. We use it only for aggregate traffic statistics and to see where players come from. Advertising features and ads data sharing are off. Without consent, Google Analytics is not loaded at all. Your choice is stored in the browser; change it with Ask me about cookies again or by clearing the site data.

3. Legal basis

Account, cloud save, technical data and payments: performance of a contract / providing the service (GDPR Art. 6(1)(b)). Error reports, gameplay statistics and the detailed gameplay recording: our legitimate interest in a working and secure service, in fixing bugs and in improving the game (Art. 6(1)(f)). This data is linked only to a random install ID, not to your name or e-mail. Google Analytics on the website: your consent (Art. 6(1)(a)), which you can withdraw at any time.

4. Third parties

Cloudflare, Inc. (content delivery and security), Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (server hosting), Stripe Payments Europe, Ltd. (web payments), Sendinblue SAS (Brevo), France (sending account e-mails: confirmation and password reset; receives only the e-mail address and the message), Google Firebase Cloud Messaging, the Apple Push Notification service and your browser's push service (delivering notifications you allowed; they receive only the device token and the message). Google Ireland Limited (Google Analytics on the website, only with your consent). Discord Inc. (our Discord server and the bot that sends gift codes; your Discord account is governed by Discord's own policy, we only send it the message with the code). Google Play and the Apple App Store process download and installation data under their own policies. These parties receive only the data needed for their service, and they are contractually required to provide the same or equal protection of user data as stated in this policy and as required by GDPR and the Google Play and App Store rules. Transfers outside the EU rely on EU Standard Contractual Clauses.

5. Security

All traffic is encrypted (HTTPS/TLS). Only the administrators can access the server, and they sign in with cryptographic keys. Secrets are never stored in source code.

6. Retention and deletion

Saved game and settings stay on your device until you delete them: in game Settings → Delete all data, by uninstalling the app, or by clearing site data in your browser.
The account and the game saved to it stay until you delete the account: in game Settings → Delete all data, or by e-mail (see groundbound.fun/delete-account). You are signed out everywhere at once; the account and the game saved to it are deleted for good after 30 days, and signing in before then cancels the deletion.
Error reports and diagnostics are deleted automatically after 14 days. Individual requests to the server are not logged.
Gameplay statistics and the detailed gameplay recording are kept as long as we need them for fixing and improving the game, then deleted. You can ask for their deletion by e-mail at any time.
Payment records are kept by Stripe as long as accounting and tax law requires (up to 10 years in the Czech Republic).

If we ever ask for your consent, you can revoke it at any time in the game settings. To request a copy or deletion of your data, e-mail support@groundbound.fun. We reply within 30 days.

7. Your rights

You have the right to access, rectify, erase, restrict and port your data, and the right to object. You may lodge a complaint with the Czech Office for Personal Data Protection (uoou.gov.cz) or with your local supervisory authority.

8. Children

The game is suitable for all ages and can be played without an account. Accounts are meant for players aged 13 or older (or the minimum age of digital consent in your country). We do not knowingly collect personal data from younger children; if we learn such an account exists, we delete it.

9. Changes

If we start processing other kinds of data, this page will be updated first. The effective date is shown at the top.