Privacy Policy

TimeQuest (timequest.fun) is run by Double Black Media Ltd, a company registered in New Zealand ("we", "us"). This policy explains what we collect when you play, why, and what you can do about it. We follow the New Zealand Privacy Act 2020.

The short version

• You can play without an account. Guests are identified only by a random code.
• If you sign in with Google, we keep your email address, your Google account ID, the player name you choose and your games. We don't keep your real name, your photo or access to your Google account.
• Other players only ever see your player name and scores, never your email.
• We use Google Analytics to understand how TimeQuest is used. It never gets your scores. We don't use it for players in the EU, UK and Switzerland.
• TimeQuest is free because it shows ads. Ad networks such as Google may use cookies to choose those ads, including personalised ones, and you can opt out of personalised ads.
• We never give your email, player name or game history to advertisers, and we don't sell your account details.

What we collect

When you play as a guest

We set a cookie holding a random code, so you can leave and come back to the day's game. We store only a scrambled (one-way hashed) version of that code, alongside your answers and score for each day. It doesn't identify you.

When you sign in with Google

Google tells us your email address and your Google account ID. We keep:

• your email address, to identify your account (for example, if you ask us to delete it);
• your Google account ID, so you can sign in again;
• the player name you choose, which appears on the leaderboard;
• your games: answers, scores, dates played, and your rank on each day.

Google may also send your name and profile photo. We don't store them. We also don't store Google's sign-in tokens, so we can't access your Google account or act on your behalf. We don't record your IP address or device with your account.

Analytics

We use Google Analytics 4 to see how people use TimeQuest: which pages are visited, the type of device and browser, the approximate location (country and city, worked out by Google from your IP address), and game events such as starting a game, which question you reached, finishing and sharing. We don't send Google your scores, your answers or how close you got. Google Analytics uses cookies, so in the European Union, the United Kingdom and Switzerland we don't currently load it at all (see Your privacy choices). You can read Google's privacy policy and opt out with Google's browser add-on.

Advertising

TimeQuest is free to play because it shows ads. The ads are provided by Google (for example Google AdSense or Google Ad Manager) and may also come from other advertising networks and their partners. To show ads, measure them and prevent fraud, these networks may set cookies or use similar technologies in your browser and collect information such as your IP address, device and browser type, the pages you visit on TimeQuest and other websites, and how you interact with ads. They may use this to show you personalised ads based on your interests.

The ad networks collect this information directly and use it under their own privacy policies. We don't give them your email address, player name, scores or game history. You can read how Google uses information from sites that use its services.

You can turn off personalised ads from Google in Google's Ad Settings, and from many other networks at aboutads.info or youronlinechoices.eu. You'll still see ads, but they won't be based on your interests. Where the law requires it (for example in the European Union and the United Kingdom), we'll ask for your consent before personalised ads or advertising cookies are used, and you can change your choice at any time (see Your privacy choices, below).

Server logs

Like most websites, our hosting provider automatically records requests to our servers, including IP addresses, to keep TimeQuest running and secure. These logs are kept for a short time and are only used for operating and protecting the service.

If you contact us

We keep your message and email address so we can reply.

How we use it

• to run the daily game, save your progress and show your history;
• to show the leaderboard, using your player name and score;
• to keep the game fair and prevent abuse;
• to understand how TimeQuest is used, so we can improve it;
• to show ads that keep TimeQuest free (through the ad networks described above);
• to respond to you, and to meet our legal obligations.

We don't sell your account details (your email, player name or game history) and don't share them with advertisers.

What other players see

Your player name, your score and rank for each day on the leaderboard. Your email address is never shown to other players.

Who we share it with

The service providers that run TimeQuest for us:

• Google Cloud, which hosts our servers and database;
• Google, for sign-in and Google Analytics;
• Google and other advertising networks, which collect information directly through their cookies to show ads, as described under Advertising.

We also use AI services to help research quiz questions. They never receive information about players. We may disclose information if the law requires it.

Where it's stored

Our servers and database are in the United States (Google Cloud). When we send information overseas, we do so with providers that protect it in ways comparable to the New Zealand Privacy Act.

Cookies

• Guest cookie (tp_guest): the random code that lets you resume today's game. Lasts up to a year.
• Sign-in cookies (timequest.*): keep you signed in. Last up to 60 days.
• Analytics cookies (_ga, _ga_*): set by Google Analytics.
• Advertising cookies: set by Google and other ad networks to show and measure ads, including personalised ads. Their names and how long they last are set by each network.

The guest and sign-in cookies are needed for TimeQuest to work, so we don't ask before setting them. You can block or delete cookies in your browser. Without the guest or sign-in cookies, TimeQuest can't remember your game.

Your privacy choices

We don't ask for consent on TimeQuest yet, so we don't use Google Analytics for players in the European Union, the United Kingdom or Switzerland. To tell, your browser checks its own time zone, without sending it to us, and if it might be in Europe, Google Analytics isn't loaded at all. Before that changes, and before we show ads, we'll add a message asking for your consent.

Elsewhere, you can opt out of Google Analytics with Google's browser add-on, and out of personalised ads with the links under Advertising. We also treat your browser's Global Privacy Control signal as an opt-out of personalised ads.

How long we keep it

We keep your account and game history while your account exists. If you ask us to delete your account, we delete your email address, Google account ID and player name, and remove you from the leaderboards. We may keep anonymous totals (for example, how many games were played on a day). Guest games are kept as part of each day's results but can't be linked to you. Google Analytics data is kept for the period set in our Google Analytics settings.

Your rights

You can ask for a copy of the personal information we hold about you, ask us to correct it, or ask us to delete your account. Email hello@timequest.fun and we'll respond within 20 working days. If you're not happy with our response, you can complain to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner. If you live elsewhere, you may have similar rights under your local laws, and we'll help you use them. That includes opting out of personalised advertising, which you can do at any time with the links under Advertising.

Children

TimeQuest is for people aged 13 and over. If you believe a child under 13 has signed in, contact us and we'll delete their account.

Security

All connections to TimeQuest are encrypted. Access to our systems is restricted, and we store as little about you as we can. No system is perfectly secure, but we take care to protect what we hold.

Changes to this policy

If we change how we handle your information, we'll update this page and its date. For significant changes, we'll also let players know on the site.

Contact

Double Black Media Ltd, New Zealand. Email hello@timequest.fun. See also our Terms of Service.