RansomForge, LLC ("we," "our," or "us") values your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and your choices when you use any RansomForge game or service (together, the "Services").
This Policy covers all RansomForge titles and the accounts behind them, including:
- Hero Survival, on Android and Windows PC
- Castle Defender
- Any RansomForge website or service that links to this Policy, including https://ransomforge.com
Where a section applies to only some of the Services, it says so.
1. Information We Collect
A. Information You Provide
Depending on which title you play and how you sign in, we may collect:
- Email address
- Display name
- Authentication details (for example, password credentials, where a title offers password sign-in)
- Support or account communications
If you use third-party sign-in (such as Google), we receive basic profile/account identifiers from that provider — a provider account identifier, and, subject to the permissions you grant, your name and email address. Hero Survival uses Google sign-in only; on Android this runs through Android's Credential Manager, and on Windows through your web browser. We never receive or store your Google password.
B. Security and Authentication Data
To secure accounts, we may store:
- Password hashes (not plaintext passwords)
- Multi-factor authentication data (such as TOTP secret status)
- Hashed authentication/verification/reset token records
- Email verification status
- A session token held on your device so you are not asked to sign in every launch
C. Gameplay and Service Data
We may collect data needed to operate gameplay and account features, such as:
- Match outcomes, placements, and player ratings
- Queue/party/lobby state
- In-game progression, purchases made with in-game currency, and similar match records
- Account status and region settings
D. Technical Data
We may automatically collect limited technical information, such as:
- IP address and request metadata
- The game's version and build identifier, platform, and device type
- Approximate usage logs for reliability and abuse prevention
E. Push Notification Data
If you turn on notifications, we store a push notification token for each device you sign in on, together with the platform it belongs to and which kinds of notification you have chosen to receive.
A push token identifies a device, not a person. We use it only to deliver the notifications you have switched on, and we never share it with other players or show it anywhere in the game. Because a token identifies a handset rather than an account, signing in on a device moves that device's token to your account and stops it reaching the previous account; signing out removes it entirely.
On Android, notifications are delivered through Google's Firebase Cloud Messaging, which necessarily receives the token and the message content in order to deliver it. On Windows, notifications are produced by the game on your own computer and no token is created or stored.
We do not keep a record of which notifications were sent to you or when, and we do not record whether you opened one.
F. Gameplay Recordings (Hero Survival)
In Hero Survival, we record what happens during matches so we can teach the game's computer-controlled players to play more like people do. A recording captures what a player could see during the match and what they did in response — for example, where they moved, what they targeted, which abilities they used and when, what they bought, and which level-up choices they made — together with the hero they played and their rating.
Recordings are stored with your other match records and handled the same way. We use them pooled with other players' recordings, grouped by rating, to teach computer-controlled players how people at each skill level play; we do not use them to build a model of any one player. If you delete your account, your recordings are kept like the rest of your gameplay records, in a form that is no longer linked to you. We keep recordings for as long as they are useful for training computer-controlled players.
We do not sell gameplay recordings, and we do not share them outside RansomForge. The only exception is the service providers we rely on to run the Services, such as the companies that host our servers and storage. They handle recordings only on our behalf and only for that purpose. The few other cases in which any of our information may be shared, such as a court order or the sale of the company, are described in Section 4.
Recording is part of playing Hero Survival and cannot be switched off for individual players. If you do not want your matches recorded, please do not play.
Computer-controlled players are always marked as such in the game.
G. Party Voice Chat (Hero Survival)
Hero Survival lets you talk by voice with the other members of your party. Voice chat is optional. It is off by default on Android. On Windows it is on by default but only connects while you are in a party. You can turn it off at any time in Settings.
When voice chat is on and you are in a party, audio from your microphone is sent live to the other members of that party, and you hear theirs. By default your microphone sends only while you hold the push-to-talk key or button; if you choose "open mic" in Settings, it sends whenever you are in your party's voice room. Only current members of your party can join that room.
Voice chat is carried by Vivox, a voice service operated by Unity Technologies, acting as our service provider. To connect you, Vivox receives your audio as it is spoken, your IP address and connection details, and a voice identifier we generate for your account. That identifier does not contain your name, email address, or account ID. We do not give Vivox your name or email address.
We do not record, store, transcribe, or listen to voice chat, and we have not enabled any Vivox feature that does. Vivox's own handling of the data it receives is described in Unity's privacy policy at https://unity.com/legal/privacy-policy.
On Android, the game asks for microphone permission only when you turn voice chat on, and you can withdraw it at any time in your device's settings. Muting another player happens only on your own device: they are not told, and we do not record it.
H. What We Do Not Collect
The Services do not serve advertising and do not embed third-party advertising or analytics SDKs. We do not collect your contacts, photos, precise location, or camera data. We use your microphone only for party voice chat as described in Section 1.G, and only while you have it turned on.
2. How We Use Information
We use information to:
- Provide and maintain the Services
- Authenticate users and secure accounts
- Match players together and record match results
- Send transactional emails (for example, verification and password reset links)
- Detect, prevent, and investigate abuse, fraud, and security incidents
- Enforce our Terms and legal obligations
- Improve features, stability, and performance
- Train and improve the game's computer-controlled players
3. Legal Bases (Where Required)
Where applicable law requires, we process personal data based on one or more of the following:
- Performance of a contract (providing the Services)
- Legitimate interests (security, fraud prevention, product improvement)
- Compliance with legal obligations
- Consent (where specifically requested)
4. How We Share Information
We do not sell personal information.
We may share information:
- With service providers who help us operate the Services (for example, hosting, email delivery, authentication infrastructure, and voice chat)
- If required by law, legal process, or governmental request
- To protect rights, safety, and security of users, us, or others
- In connection with a merger, acquisition, financing, or asset transfer
Other players may see your display name and your results in matches you play with them. When you use voice chat, the members of your party hear what you say.
5. Data Retention
We retain personal data only as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes described in this Policy, including legal, accounting, security, and operational requirements.
Retention may vary by data type. For example, certain authentication tokens are designed to expire automatically, while account records may be retained while your account remains active and for a reasonable period thereafter.
6. Security
We use reasonable technical and organizational safeguards designed to protect personal information. However, no method of transmission or storage is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
7. Your Choices and Rights
Depending on your location, you may have rights to:
- Access personal data
- Correct inaccurate data
- Delete personal data
- Restrict or object to certain processing
- Request data portability
- Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent
To exercise these rights, including deletion of your account and its associated data, contact us at support@ransomforge.com. We may need to verify your identity before responding.
You can turn notifications off at any time, either individually by category in Settings, or entirely in your device's own notification settings. Turning a category off stops us sending it; turning notifications off at the device level stops them being shown. Signing out removes that device's push token.
You can turn Hero Survival's voice chat off at any time in Settings, mute any party member for yourself, and on Android withdraw microphone permission in your device's settings.
You can also stop the Services collecting further data at any time by signing out and uninstalling the game.
8. Children's Privacy
The Services are not directed to children under 13 (or older age where required by local law). If you believe a child provided personal information in violation of this Policy, contact us so we can take appropriate action.
9. International Transfers
If you access the Services from outside the country where our systems are located, your information may be transferred to and processed in other jurisdictions that may have different data protection laws.
10. Changes to This Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. If material changes are made, we will post the updated Policy with a new effective date and may provide additional notice where required.
11. Contact Us
For privacy questions or requests, contact:
RansomForge, LLC
1659 HW 46 W STE 115 PMB 239
New Braunfels Texas 78132
United States
support@ransomforge.com