📓 Privacy Policy

👋 Introduction

Welcome to Pencilmark ("we", "our", or "us"), developed by TigerApps / AKZ Marketing LLC. This Privacy Policy explains how we handle information when you use our mobile application Pencilmark ("the App").

Pencilmark is a calm word-search puzzle game designed for grown-ups. You pick a themed pack, find hidden words on the grid, and track your progress across daily puzzles, the weekly Sunday puzzle, and your own custom word lists. Your stats, achievements, streaks, custom word lists, and saved game sessions are all stored on your device.

By using the App, you agree to the terms described in this policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the App.

📱 Information We Collect

Information You Provide (stored locally on your device only):

• Custom word lists you create (titles and the words you type — for example, "My Family" with names of family members)
• Your game stats: total puzzles solved, words found, hints used, daily streak, and best times per word list
• Stars earned per puzzle and per pack
• Achievements you have unlocked (12 badges across streaks, mastery, exploration, and pack completion)
• Daily puzzle solve history and weekly Sunday puzzle solve history
• Saved sessions from puzzles you started but did not finish
• Your preferences: sound on/off, haptic feedback on/off, dark mode, cell size, notifications on/off
• Your in-app purchase entitlements (which packs you own, whether you bought the bundle, whether ads are removed) — these are also verifiable through Google Play Billing

Automatically Collected Information:

• Standard Google Play app installation and update metrics (install counts, crash reports, country of install) — collected by Google Play, not by us
• Device type and Android version — as reported to Google Play, not to us
• Advertising identifier (AAID) — used by Google AdMob to show relevant ads. You can reset or limit this ID in Android Settings → Privacy → Ads

Information We Do NOT Collect:

• ❌ Your real name, email address, or phone number (unless you voluntarily email us for support)
• ❌ Your location or GPS data
• ❌ Your contacts
• ❌ Your payment information (Google Play handles all purchases)
• ❌ Photos, microphone audio, or any device sensors
• ❌ Your browsing history outside the app
• ❌ Any health, financial, or other sensitive personal data
• ❌ A username — Pencilmark does not ask for one

🔄 How Your Data Is Stored

On your device (local storage):

• Your stats, achievements, custom word lists, saved sessions, preferences, and purchase entitlements are stored in your phone's private app storage
• Data is accessible only to Pencilmark — other apps cannot read it
• Android's built-in device encryption (on by default for Android 10+) protects this data at rest

Android Auto Backup (optional, handled by Google):

• If you have Google Account backup enabled, Android may include Pencilmark's data in your personal Google Drive backup
• This backup is in your personal Google Drive — it is NOT sent to us, and it is encrypted by Google
• You can disable this in Android Settings → Google → Backup

Print and PDF sharing:

• Pencilmark can generate a PDF of any puzzle (the grid, the word list, and the answer key) so you can print it or share it
• The PDF is generated entirely on your device — no part of it is uploaded to our servers
• When you tap "Print or save PDF", Android's standard share sheet opens. Where the file goes from there (email, Google Drive, a printer, a messaging app) is your choice and is handled by the apps you select

Custom word lists:

• Custom lists you create stay on your device. They are not uploaded, not shared with us, and not visible to any other user
• If you print or share a PDF of a custom puzzle, that PDF goes only to whoever you share it with — we do not see it

📢 Advertising (Google AdMob)

Pencilmark displays advertisements to support free access to the game. Ads are served by Google AdMob, a Google advertising service.

Where ads appear:

• A small banner ad at the bottom of the home screen and other menu screens
• Occasional full-screen (interstitial) ads after completed puzzles, with a minimum 3-minute gap and never after the first few games

Where ads do NOT appear:

• ❌ During gameplay — you will never see an ad while solving a puzzle
• ❌ After a perfect 3-star solve (we don't punish a clean run with an ad)
• ❌ During the first few puzzles you ever play
• ❌ For users who have purchased "Remove Ads"

What AdMob receives:

• Your device's advertising identifier (AAID) — a resettable ID assigned by Android, not your real identity
• Generic device information: model, OS version, screen size, rough country/language
• App identifier (com.tigerapps.pencilmark)

Google AdMob uses this information to select and serve advertisements. AdMob's data handling is governed by Google's privacy policy: policies.google.com/privacy. To learn more about how Google uses information from apps that use its services, see policies.google.com/technologies/partner-sites.

Your ad choices:

• You can reset your advertising ID at any time in Android Settings → Privacy → Ads → "Reset advertising ID"
• You can opt out of personalized ads in Android Settings → Privacy → Ads → "Opt out of Ads Personalization" (you will still see ads, but they will not be personalized)
• For users in the European Economic Area, UK, and Switzerland, the app will display a Google-managed consent dialog allowing you to grant or deny consent for personalized ads, in compliance with GDPR and the EU Digital Markets Act
• You can permanently remove ads with a one-time "Remove Ads" purchase

🛒 In-App Purchases

Pencilmark offers optional in-app purchases processed through Google Play Billing. We do not collect or store any payment information. All transactions are handled securely by Google Play.

Available purchases:

• All Packs Forever (bundle) — One-time purchase that unlocks every premium theme pack, including any new pack we add in the future
• Individual theme packs — Each premium pack can be purchased separately as a one-time purchase
• Remove Ads — One-time purchase that removes banner and interstitial advertising for the lifetime of the app on the purchasing device

Your purchase entitlements are stored on your device and are also verifiable by Google Play. If you reinstall the app or change devices (using the same Google account), tap "Restore purchases" in the paywall screen to recover your entitlements at no charge.

For purchase refunds, contact Google Play Support. We cannot issue refunds directly because we never receive your payment information.

🔔 Notifications

Pencilmark can send a single optional daily reminder at 9:00 AM in your local timezone, encouraging you to solve today's puzzle.

• Notifications are off by default and only enabled if you turn them on in Settings
• You can turn them off at any time in Settings or in Android system settings
• Notifications are scheduled locally on your device — we do not run a push notification server, and we do not know whether you opened a notification
• No data is sent over the network to schedule or fire a reminder

🔗 Third-Party Services

Pencilmark uses the following third-party services:

• Google AdMob — Advertising. See the Advertising section above. Google Privacy Policy
• Google Play Billing — In-app purchases. Google handles all payment data. Google Privacy Policy
• Google Play Services — App distribution, updates, in-app review prompts, and (where applicable) the User Messaging Platform consent dialog for EEA/UK users. Google Privacy Policy
• Android Auto Backup (Google) (optional) — Encrypted backup of app data to your personal Google Drive. Controlled by you in Android Settings.
• Google Fonts (offline) — Pencilmark uses the Poppins typeface bundled into the app. No network calls are made for fonts after install.
• Flutter (Google) — Open-source app framework with no built-in data collection

Pencilmark does not use: Firebase Analytics, Google Analytics for Firebase, Amplitude, Mixpanel, AppsFlyer, Adjust, Crashlytics, Sentry, Bugsnag, or any social media SDKs. We do not use Firebase Realtime Database, Firebase Auth, push notification services (no FCM for user-targeted push), cloud functions, Google Play Games leaderboards, or any backend that stores your personal data.

🌍 Your Rights

For EEA / UK users (GDPR and UK GDPR):

You have rights to access, rectify, erase, restrict, and port your personal data, as well as to object to processing. Because Pencilmark stores nearly all your data locally on your device, you can exercise these rights directly:

• Access — open the app and view all your stats, achievements, custom word lists, and history
• Rectify — edit or delete any of your custom word lists in the "My word lists" screen
• Erase — uninstalling the app removes all data. You can also clear specific data: delete custom lists individually, or use Android Settings → Apps → Pencilmark → Storage → Clear Data
• Object — for personalized advertising, you can withdraw consent at any time via Android Settings → Privacy → Ads. You can stop using Pencilmark at any time

For advertising, our legal basis is your consent (EEA/UK) or our legitimate interest in funding free app development (other regions where consent is not required).

For California users (CCPA):

California residents have the right to know what personal information is collected, to request deletion, to opt out of the "sale" or "sharing" of personal information, and to not be discriminated against for exercising these rights.

Pencilmark does not sell your personal information. Under CCPA's broad definition, the use of advertising identifiers by AdMob to serve personalized ads may constitute a "sharing" of personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising. California residents can opt out of personalized ads as described in the Advertising section above (Android Settings → Privacy → Ads → "Opt out of Ads Personalization").

🗑️ Data Deletion Requests

We respect your right to delete your data. Pencilmark does not require an account and stores nearly all data locally, so deletion is immediate and complete.

What gets deleted automatically on uninstall or "Clear Data":

• ✅ All game stats, scores, streaks, and best times
• ✅ All unlocked achievements
• ✅ All custom word lists you have created
• ✅ All saved sessions from unfinished puzzles
• ✅ Daily and weekly puzzle solve history
• ✅ Notification settings, sound and haptic preferences, theme, and cell size choice
• ✅ Locally stored purchase entitlements (you can restore your purchases at any time on the same Google account)

What is retained and why:

• Transaction records may be retained by Google Play Billing for legal and financial compliance — we have no control over this data
• Your Android Auto Backup on Google Drive remains until you disable it or clear it in your Google Account settings
• PDFs you have already shared on third-party platforms (email, messaging apps, etc.) remain wherever you sent them — only you can delete those
• Bug reports or pack suggestions you have emailed us remain in our support inbox; you may email us to request deletion

Delete specific data without uninstalling:

• Custom word lists — open "My word lists" and delete each list with the trash icon
• All progress — Android Settings → Apps → Pencilmark → Storage → Clear Data

👶 Children's Privacy

Pencilmark is rated for users 13 and older in compliance with Google Play's minimum age ratings and COPPA.

Pencilmark is designed primarily for an adult audience and does not market to children under 13. We do not knowingly collect any information from children under 13. Our age-gating is enforced via the Google Play Store rating system.

If a parent or guardian discovers that a child under 13 has installed Pencilmark, they should uninstall the app; all local data is removed on uninstall.

🔒 Data Security

Because Pencilmark stores nearly everything locally, there is no central database of user game data to breach. The security of your local data depends on:

• Your phone's lock screen and encryption (enabled by default on modern Android)
• Your Google Account security, if you use Android Auto Backup

Ad serving by AdMob and IAP processing by Google Play also use TLS-encrypted connections.

🔄 Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of significant changes by:

• Updating the "Last Updated" date at the top of this policy
• For significant changes affecting how we handle your data, displaying a notice within the app on next launch

Continued use of the App after changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.