Last updated: 2026-11-08

Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy describes how the Spades: No Ads app (“the App”) handles information. The App is designed so that no personal data leaves your device.

Summary

  • The App collects no personal information.
  • The App contains no analytics, advertising, or third-party tracking.
  • If you accept the Terms of Service, the App sends a record of each game you finish, not linked to you, to help train its computer players. If you don’t, it sends none.
  • Otherwise the App talks only to Apple: the App Store for purchases, and Game Center if you have signed in to it.
  • In-app purchases are handled by Apple’s App Store; the App never sees your payment details.

Game records for training the AI

When you accept the Terms of Service in the App (version 2, of 2026-11-08), the App sends a record of each game you finish to its developer’s server at gamelog.benholloway.org. The records are used only to train and test the App’s computer players.

A record contains:

  • The game’s rules (target score, nil and blind nil, bag penalty, trump ladder)
  • The cards dealt and every bid and card played, in order
  • Which seats the computer played, and at what difficulty
  • The App’s version and build number

It contains no name, email, account, Apple ID, advertising or device identifier, location, contacts, or anything you typed. Games you started from a shared deal, and games you did not finish, are never sent.

Each upload is checked with Apple’s App Attest, which proves the record came from a genuine copy of the App without identifying you or your device to the developer. The server does not record your IP address, keeps no logs of requests, and stores with each record only the day it arrived. Because nothing in a record identifies you, records cannot be traced back to you, and cannot be picked out and deleted on request.

If you choose “Not Now”, no games are sent. You can accept later in Settings > Rules and Gameplay. Once accepted, there is no setting to stop sending; the Terms of Service explain why.

Information we do not collect

We do not collect, store, transmit, or share:

  • Your name, email, or any account credentials (the App has no accounts)
  • Usage analytics or telemetry
  • Crash reports or diagnostics beyond Apple’s own system reporting, which you control in iOS Settings > Privacy & Security > Analytics & Improvements
  • Advertising identifiers (IDFA): the App does not request app-tracking permission
  • Your location
  • Your contacts, calendar, photos, or any other system-level data: the App does not request access to any of these

Data that stays on your device

The App saves game progress, settings, statistics, a copy of each game you finish, and your unlocked card-backs and felts locally on your device using Apple’s SwiftData storage. Apart from the game records described above, this data:

  • Is never transmitted off your device by the App
  • May be backed up by iOS along with your other app data if you have iCloud Backup or Finder Backup enabled; that backup is controlled entirely by you in iOS Settings
  • Is removed when you delete the App from your device

Game Center

If you are signed in to Game Center, the App posts your lifetime statistics to its leaderboards. Game Center is Apple’s service, governed by Apple’s privacy policy, and you can turn the App’s posting off in Settings > Rules and Gameplay.

Purchases

In-app purchases are processed by Apple. The App receives a signed receipt confirming whether you own the Unlimited Play unlock, but does not see your payment details, name, address, or billing information.

Apple’s privacy policy governs the purchase process: apple.com/legal/privacy.

Third-party services

The App does not integrate any third-party services, SDKs, or analytics platforms. Besides Apple’s App Store and Game Center, the only system the App communicates with is the developer’s own game-record server, and only after you accept the Terms of Service.

Children

The App is suitable for all ages. It collects no personal information from anyone, including children under 13 (or the equivalent minimum age in your region). The App does not contain content inappropriate for children.

Changes to this policy

If we update this policy, we will post the new version at this URL and update the “Last updated” date above. Material changes will be surfaced inside the App on the next launch after the change.

Contact

For privacy questions, email michaelholloway.apps@icloud.com .