Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

Welcome to Artbitrator. We respect your privacy and are committed to protecting your personal data. This privacy policy explains how we collect, use, and safeguard your information when you use our service, including playing the game, browsing the website, and purchasing merchandise.

Artbitrator is operated from the United Kingdom. Our processing of personal data is governed by the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. This policy should be read alongside our Terms of Service.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Game Data

• Drawings you create during gameplay
• Game scores, match history, and session recordings
• In-game username or display name
• Gameplay statistics, preferences, and mode selections
• Voice chat data during multiplayer sessions (processed in real-time, not stored)

2.2 Technical Data

• Device information, operating system, and browser type
• IP address and approximate location (country/region level)
• Pages visited, time spent, clicks, and navigation patterns
• Referring website (how you found us)
• Cookie and local storage data (see Section 8)

2.3 Purchase Data

If you purchase merchandise, we additionally collect:

• Full name and shipping address
• Email address
• Order details and purchase history
• Payment information is collected and processed directly by our payment provider (Stripe) — we do not see or store your full card details

3. How We Use Your Information

We use your data for the following purposes:

3.1 Running the Game

• Providing and improving the game and its features
• Enabling multiplayer functionality, matchmaking, and real-time drawing
• Displaying your drawings in the public gallery, leaderboards, and player profiles
• Creating mosaics, collages, and composite images using player drawings
• Using drawings in promotional and marketing materials
• Preventing cheating, fraud, and abuse

3.2 Analytics & Improvement

• Analysing game performance, user behaviour, and session recordings to improve the experience
• Understanding how players find and use the website and game
• Monitoring site performance and diagnosing technical issues

3.3 Merchandise

• Processing and fulfilling merchandise orders
• Sharing your shipping details with our print-on-demand fulfilment partner to produce and deliver your order
• Processing payments via our payment provider
• Sending order confirmations and shipping updates

3.4 Communication

• Sending important service updates (e.g. Terms of Service changes)
• Responding to your support requests or enquiries
• Sending marketing emails only if you have explicitly opted in (you can unsubscribe at any time)

4. Legal Basis for Processing

Under UK GDPR, we process your data based on the following legal grounds:

• Contract: Processing necessary to provide the game and fulfil merchandise orders (Article 6(1)(b))
• Legitimate interests: Analytics, fraud prevention, improving the service, and displaying player content in the gallery and mosaics (Article 6(1)(f))
• Consent: Marketing emails and non-essential cookies — only with your explicit opt-in (Article 6(1)(a))
• Legal obligation: Where we need to comply with the law, such as tax records for merchandise sales (Article 6(1)(c))

5. Data Sharing

We do not sell your personal data. We may share your information with the following parties:

• Other players: Your username, drawings, and scores are visible to other players during matches and in the public gallery
• The public: Drawings may appear in our public gallery at artbitrator.com/gallery, in mosaic images on the website, and in promotional materials accessible to anyone on the internet
• Fulfilment partners: If you purchase merchandise, your name and shipping address are shared with our print-on-demand partner (currently Printful) solely to produce and deliver your order
• Payment processors: Payment is handled by Stripe, who process your card details under their own privacy policy
• Analytics providers: We use Microsoft Clarity for session recordings and heatmaps, DataFast for real-time visitor stats, and Google Analytics for website traffic analysis
• Hosting and infrastructure: Our game and website are hosted on Microsoft Azure (UK and EU regions) and served via Cloudflare
• Legal requirements: When required by law, regulation, or legal process, or to protect our rights and the safety of our users

6. Public Gallery & Your Drawings

Drawings created during gameplay may be displayed publicly in our gallery, used in dynamically generated mosaic images across the website and game, and included in promotional materials. These drawings are accessible to anyone on the internet.

If you would like a specific drawing removed from the public gallery, or if you want to opt out of your drawings appearing in merchandise, please contact us using the details in Section 13. We will action removal requests as quickly as reasonably possible.

7. Your Rights

Under UK GDPR, you have the right to:

• Access — request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
• Rectification — request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data
• Erasure — request deletion of your personal data (subject to our legal obligations)
• Restriction — request that we limit how we use your data
• Portability — receive your data in a structured, commonly used format
• Object — object to processing based on legitimate interests
• Withdraw consent — where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time

To exercise any of these rights, contact us via the channels in Section 13. We will respond within 30 days. If you are not satisfied with our response, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).

8. Cookies & Tracking

We use cookies and similar technologies on our website and in the game. Here's what we use and why:

8.1 Essential Cookies

Required for the game and website to function. These include session tokens, game state, and preferences. You cannot opt out of these without breaking core functionality.

8.2 Analytics Cookies

We use the following analytics services to understand how people use the game and website:

• Microsoft Clarity — session recordings, heatmaps, and click tracking to help us improve the user experience. Clarity may record mouse movements, clicks, and scrolls. It does not record text typed into password fields. Microsoft Privacy Statement
• Google Analytics — website traffic, page views, and visitor demographics. Google Privacy Policy

8.3 Third-Party Embeds

Our website includes embedded content from third parties that may set their own cookies:

• DataFast — real-time visitor widget
• Spotify — music player embed (loaded only on user interaction)

You can control or disable cookies through your browser settings. Blocking analytics cookies will not affect your ability to play the game.

9. International Data Transfers

Some of our service providers (analytics, payment processing, fulfilment) are based outside the UK. Where data is transferred internationally, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, including the use of providers who comply with UK GDPR adequacy decisions or who have implemented Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs).

10. Data Retention

We retain your data for as long as necessary to provide our services and comply with legal obligations:

• Game data and drawings: Retained for the lifetime of the service. Drawings displayed in the gallery may be retained indefinitely
• Account data: Retained while your account is active, and for a reasonable period after to allow reactivation
• Purchase records: Retained for 7 years to comply with tax and accounting obligations
• Analytics data: Retained according to the respective provider's retention policies (typically 14-26 months)

11. Children's Privacy

Our service is not directed to children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe we have collected information from a child under 13, please contact us immediately and we will delete it.

Users aged 13–17 should have parental or guardian consent before using the service. We apply high privacy defaults for all users in line with the ICO's Children's Code. Merchandise purchases require users to be at least 18 or to have parental involvement.

12. Security

We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your data, including encrypted connections (HTTPS/TLS), secure hosting infrastructure, and access controls. However, no method of transmission over the internet is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security. If you become aware of any security issues, please contact us immediately.

13. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, want to exercise your data rights, request drawing removal, or report a concern, please contact us:

• Discord: Join our Discord
• Twitter/X: @artbitratorgame
• Reddit: r/Artbitrator
• Itch.io: Game Page

14. Changes to This Policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. We will notify you of significant changes by posting the updated policy on this page, updating the "Last updated" date, and where possible notifying users via in-game notice or our Discord server.