Privacy Policy — Word Tower

Last updated: July 28, 2026

This policy explains what Word Tower ("the app," "we," "us") does and doesn't do with your data. No account is required to play — sign-in is anonymous, and nothing here is tied to your real name or email unless you choose to type one in as a display name.

The short version

Most of your progress (XP, streak, achievements, words learned) lives on your device.
A small amount syncs to a backend (Google Firebase) so the weekly leaderboard and referral rewards can work across devices — this uses an anonymous ID, not your name or email.
We don't sell your data.
Ads (Google AdMob) and in-app purchases (Apple/Google billing) involve those third parties processing limited data under their own privacy terms.

What we store, and where

Data	Where it lives	Leaves your device?
XP, level, streak, achievements, review/mistake history	Local device storage	No
Word Tower scores, tower floor records	Local device storage	No
Star/lightning-charge currency balance	Local device storage	No
Unlimited Energy ownership, joker/revive pack inventory (from purchases)	Local device storage	No
Your chosen app language, CEFR level	Local device storage	No
Anonymous device ID (Firebase Anonymous Authentication)	Firebase	Yes — not linked to your name, email, or phone number
Display name (only if you set one, and only if you opt in to the leaderboard)	Firebase (Firestore)	Yes, shown to other players on the weekly leaderboard
Weekly XP standing, referral code and redemption status	Firebase (Firestore)	Yes — needed to run the leaderboard and referral rewards across devices
App usage events (screens viewed, features used)	Firebase Analytics	Yes
Crash and diagnostic logs	Firebase Crashlytics	Yes
Advertising ID	Google AdMob	Yes — see "Advertising" below
Apple/Google account identifier (only if you choose to sign in with Apple or Google in Settings)	Firebase Authentication	Yes — see "Sign-in with Apple / Google" below for exactly what this does and doesn't include

We use your device's standard local storage (iOS UserDefaults / Android SharedPreferences) for everything that stays on-device. Deleting the app removes all local data; see "Deleting your data" for the backend copy.

Waitlist email (pre-launch landing page)

If you join the waitlist at our landing page before Word Tower is available in the App Store or Play Store, we collect the email address you enter and a timestamped record that you agreed to receive launch updates (the checkbox on that page). This is stored in the same backend (Firebase Firestore) as the rest of this policy describes, under an anonymous browser session — we don't ask for your name or any other information. We use this email only to notify you when the app launches and for occasional related updates; we don't sell or share it with anyone else. If you'd like your waitlist entry and email removed at any time, contact us at the address in "Contact" below.

Sign-in with Apple / Google

Settings lets you sign in with Apple or Google. Doing so upgrades your existing anonymous session to one linked to a stable identifier from that provider, so your progress can be recognized as yours if you ever reinstall or switch devices in the future — it does not currently sync your progress across devices (that's a separate, later feature). We only request the minimum needed for this identifier link:

Sign in with Apple: we ask for no additional information (no name, no email) — just a stable, private identifier.
Sign in with Google: Google's own sign-in flow technically includes your Google account's email/name as part of its standard response, but we don't read, store, or display it anywhere — only the identifier is used, the same as with Apple.

Signing in this way is entirely optional; the app works fully with just the anonymous session described above.

Notifications

If you opt in to a daily word reminder, it's scheduled locally on your device. We don't operate a push-notification server and don't know whether or when you received it.

Pronunciation (text-to-speech)

Word pronunciation uses your device's built-in text-to-speech voices. Audio is generated on-device and isn't sent anywhere.

Advertising (when enabled)

Word Tower may show rewarded video ads only (never banner or interstitial ads) — for example, to refill a play charge or double a reward. Ads are served through Google AdMob. When an ad is shown:

On iOS, we ask for your permission via Apple's App Tracking Transparency prompt before any tracking-related identifier is used. If you decline, you can still watch ads for rewards; you'll just see less personalized ones.
In the EU, UK, and other regions where required, a consent form (via Google's User Messaging Platform) asks how you'd like ads to be personalized before any ad loads.
AdMob may process device identifiers (like your advertising ID) and general information (like approximate location, device type) to select and measure ads. See Google's Privacy Policy for how they handle this.

In-app purchases

Unlimited Energy and joker/revive packs are one-time purchases, processed entirely by Apple (App Store) or Google (Play Store). We never see or store your payment information — Apple/Google handle billing, and we only receive confirmation that a purchase was made, which we use locally to unlock what you paid for (unlimited energy, or a joker pack's uses).

Referrals

If you share your invite code or redeem a friend's, the code and its redemption status are stored in Firebase (Firestore) under your anonymous ID so that both sides of the invite can be credited correctly — this requires a backend relay by design, not just local storage.

Deleting your data

Settings → Account → Delete Account removes your leaderboard entry and referral record from Firebase, and clears local app data from your device. Since sign-in is anonymous, there's no separate email/password account to delete.

Children's privacy

Word Tower is a general-audience vocabulary game and is not directed at children under 13 (or the relevant age in your region). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children beyond what's described above (an anonymous device ID and, optionally, a self-chosen nickname).

Changes to this policy

If we change what data we collect or how (e.g., when a backend-based feature ships), we'll update this page and the "Last updated" date above.

Contact

Questions about this policy: carl3n.dev@gmail.com