Our Sites, Services, and Software (including the games and applications you access), may collect a variety of information and data:
Sites, Services, Software. When you log into our Sites or Services, or install or use our Software, we may request your email address, username, password, security information, and information to help us in the event we need to contact you, such as your name and telephone number, forum name, third party ID (such as your Steam ID, Xbox Live ID, and PlayStation Network ID) billing information, payment account details, and the shipping address. We use this information to contact you to fulfill your requests, to introduce new games and features, to let you know if a problem has been discovered or corrected, and to provide you with news and information that you request from us. Generally, you may access our Sites without providing personal information, although you may be required to provide personal information to access our Software or certain Services so that we can ensure that only authorized users are accessing these products.
At your discretion and provided you meet certain eligibility requirements, in some cases you may elect to post or upload additional facts and material about yourself and your profile, including a biography, birth date, a profile picture, your location, your interests, or your occupation. Postings made on our forums or future forums and sites are governed by our Terms of Service and this Privacy Policy. To learn more about how you can protect the information you share in our forums, please review the Section HOW YOU CAN HELP KEEP YOUR INFORMATION SECURE, which you will find below.
Purchases through Third-Party Services and Distributors. When you use third-party services to purchase our Software and Services, for example, Value’s Steam, Sony (for PlayStation platforms and services), Microsoft (for Xbox and Windows platforms and services), Epic (for Epic Games platform and services), and similar distribution services, we may obtain your name, email address, online ID, country, state or province, language, date of birth, and other social information you provide to them. We use this information to help verify your purchase, to notify you of recent updates and products, and to assist our customer support services, including identifying and resolving general issues and problems experienced by you and other Sites, Services, and Software users. When we receive this information, we will obtain, store, and remove it in accordance with this Privacy Policy and relevant international laws, including those of Canada, the United States, and the European Union. We do not receive your credit card number or other financial information from these services.
Purchases Directly from Us. If you purchase Software or Services directly from us, we may collect your billing information, including your name, address, telephone number, payment card number, and payment account details. We use this information to verify your purchase, fulfill orders, to notify you of recent updates and products you might enjoy, and to assist our customer support services, including identifying and resolving general issues and problems experienced by you and other users. When we receive this information, we will obtain, store, and remove it in accordance with this Privacy Policy. By purchasing directly from us, you are authorizing us to collect, store, and use this information in accordance with this Privacy Policy to verify your purchase, provide you with refunds, and to identify purchasing trends on an aggregate basis.
Information You Provide Online. When you connect to our Sites, Services, or Software through a third party, we may collect information about you from these third parties, depending on the third party’s terms of service and the privacy settings you have specified. For example, if you access our Software through Value’s Steam, Sony PlayStation’s platforms and services, Microsoft’s Xbox and Windows platforms and services), Google’s Stadia platform and service, Epic Games platform and services, or other third-party platform or service, we may obtain certain personal information, for example, your full name, profile picture, user ID, login, email address, physical location, gender, birthday, groups and affiliations, and forum posts. We collect this information to identify where our users are coming from and how they found us. We also use this information to identify trends and interests, which helps us to build better products. If you do not want us collecting or using this information, you can often disable this feature through the settings on the sites and service you are using. If we have collected this information and you do not want us to use it or store it, please let us know and we will take steps to ensure it is removed from our servers.
Connecting to our Sites Directly. When you connect to our Sites directly from your Internet browser, we may collect your Internet IP address, type of browser, and the operating system you used. Our Sites may use Google Analytics which utilize “Cookies” as explained in more detail later this Privacy Policy. We may also collect the date and time you accessed our Sites, the pages you visited, your IP address, country of access, browser type, cookie opt-in data, and information on how you found us through search terms. We collect this information in aggregate to get a better idea of how our users are finding us and what search criteria they are using. By using our Sites, Services, and Software, you are authorizing us to collect, store, and use this information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
Connecting to Us Through Your Mobile Device. If you use our Sites, Services, or Software from a mobile phone or device, we may collect information from that device, including your device type, unique identifier, and other data you chose to provide or share in accordance with your wireless provider’s terms of use. For example, a push notification from us may appear on your phone in the form of a pop-up message. We may also send push notifications and other information about our Services or Software to your mobile device. You can manage your mobile device push notifications through your device settings and/or through other options your wireless device provider may provide. If you do not want us to send you push notifications or other information in this manner, you may disable them through the settings on your phone. By using our Sites, Services, and Software, you are authorizing us to collect, store, and use your mobile device information in accordance with this Privacy Policy. If we send you push notifications and you do not want to receive them, please let us know immediately and we will take steps to ensure your information is removed from our servers and push notification
Information You Provide Through Feedback. Our Sites, Services, and Software may provide you the ability to submit feedback to us, including comments, suggestions, and any bugs you discover in our Software or Services. When you submit this information to us, we may collect your name or username and email address to follow up with you or thank you for your suggestion. By using our Sites, Services, and Software, you are authorizing us to collect, store, and use your feedback information in accordance with this Privacy Policy and the laws of the United States and the European Union. If we send you a follow up email or notify you in any other way, and you do not want to receive this notification, please let us know immediately by contacting us at [email protected] and we will take steps to ensure it is removed from our servers and notification services.
Using Automated Collection Tools. Our Sites, Services, and Software may employ server log files and automated data collection tools, including cookies, tags, and scripts (including Google Analytics and similar services). These tools may track and collect certain information your browser sends in response, including your IP address, browser type, entrance and exit pages, URLs, platform type, duration on a page, clickstream data, pages viewed, date and time, and other information. When you access our Sites, Services, and Software through sites and services that allow us to collect such information, we may collect and associate this information with you. We use this information to identify trends, troubleshoot our games and services, and to better understand who is using our products, which helps us to identify errors and to design new products and services. By using our Sites, Services, and Software, you are authorizing us to collect, store, and use this information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
Information We Obtain for Specific Purposes. Occasionally, we may request information from you on a product order form, through promotions and contests, or through other online transaction forms. These requests may ask you to provide contact information (such as your name and mailing or shipping address) and, in some cases, payment information (such as credit card number and credit card expiration date). We use this information to verify orders and to make sure that the individuals participating in our contests and promotions are eligible. By using our Sites, Services, and Software, you are authorizing us to collect, store, and use this information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
Information We Obtain from Social Media. Our Sites, Services, and Software may include social media functions and features, for example, a Facebook “Like” button or Twitter “Share” feature. Through this functionality, we may collect your IP address, and the page you are visiting on our Sites or in our Services. In some cases, we may set a cookie (see definition of “cookies” below). These social media functions are often hosted by third parties, and in these cases, or in the case we provide a link to such services and functions, your interactions, and the privacy of the information you provide is subject to and governed by the privacy policy of the company providing it.
Surveys and Contests. If we conduct surveys or initiate contests, sweepstakes, or other programs, we may ask for your country, date of birth, telephone number, and other information to verify who you are and how to contact you. By entering our contests and surveys, you are authorizing us to collect, store, and use your mobile device information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
Geographic and Telemetry Data. Our Services and Software may employ tracking technologies, such as pixel tags, web beacons, and programming codes. These technologies may enable us and our partners to derive your physical location based on your IP address, which is used to verify and authenticate users and to identify abuse. By using our Sites, Services, and Software, you are authorizing us to collect, store, and use this information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
Targeted Advertising and Ad Serving Technologies. We do not use your personal information to send you targeted advertising, nor do we employ ad serving services or technology, however we reserve the right to do so, provided that such uses conform with the laws of the United States and Europe regarding such matters.
Direct Advertising. Please note that will always ask for your consent before sending you direct advertising, for example if you want to send you an incentive offer by email. If for any reason you receive a direct advertisement from us and believe you did not consent to it, please contact us [email protected] and we will ensure that your name and email address is removed from any future direct ad. You may also review the section below, YOUR RIGHT TO CONTROL OUR USE AND STORAGE OF THE INFORMATION, to better understand your rights and our duties regarding direct advertising.