I play a game built with Unity software, what should I know?

Unity has collected some or all of the following information about your device: unique device identifiers (e.g., IDFV for iOS devices and Android ID for Android devices); IP address; country of install (mapped from IP address); device manufacturer and model platform type (iOS, Android, Mac, Windows, etc.) and the operating system and version running on your system or device; language; CPU information such as model, the number of CPUs present, frequency, and instruction set support flags; the graphics card type and vendor name; graphics card driver name and version (e.g., “nv4disp.dll 6.10.93.71”); which graphics API is in use (e.g., “OpenGL 2.1” or “Direct3D 9.0c”); amount of system and video RAM present; current screen resolution; version of the Unity Editor used to create the game; sensor flags (e.g., device support for gyroscope, touch pressure or accelerometer); application or bundle identification (“app ID”) of the game installed; unique advertising identifiers provided for iOS and Android devices (e.g., IDFA or Android Ad ID); and a checksum of all the data that gets sent to verify that it transmitted correctly.

Some Unity developers use Unity’s Analytics and Ad services, which collect additional information (see FAQs on Unity Analytics and Unity Ads below for details); however, our usage of this data is largely for the following purposes. In serving ads, we try to predict which ads will be of most interest to you based on the games you play and the ads you watch. For analytics, we assist our developers to deliver the best game experience for you. For example, game developers who use our software often standardize certain features to enhance game player experience, such as saving your place in a game. This means that the game level you reached in your last session is where you will begin when you return to the game. Developers also need our assistance in tracking when you are eligible to redeem a reward within a game, such as when you have completed a challenge and get store credits to purchase new tools to play the game.  In our analytics service, some of your data points will also be rolled up into an anonymized, aggregated format to help game developers make decisions about how they support their games. For example, if a game developer is considering phasing out support for an older version of iOS software, they may look at the total number of players currently using that version of iOS software to determine if they need to support that version in updates.  Another use on a per game basis is when a developer analyzes the numbers of players dropping out after a certain level.  The developer would use this information to look at the design of their game and re-assess if the game challenge is truly intuitive or needs some additional instruction for players.  This allows the developer to enhance the experience and retain the developer’s customers better.

Some Unity developers may collect your information independent of Unity. Unity does not have control over this information. If you want to request access to or deletion of this information, then check each developer’s app settings or website for instructions on how to make a request.

I play a game that uses Unity Analytics, what do I need to know?
Unity has collected device information, like IP address and device identifiers, as well as events completed or actions taken within the game, including level, number of credits, time it took you to earn them, metadata about in-game communications and the value and details of purchases. Using our systems, the developer of the game has ongoing access to this data. This collection and use of data makes it possible for your experience to operate as expected by permitting you to do things like redeem rewards you have earned or return to where you left off in a game. Other Unity customers may have access to aggregated reports about game activity in general across a number of games. These reports are based, in part, on your game activities, but do not specifically identify you or your device. The reports described in this paragraph help developers make decisions on optimal methods to run the games they have made for you. For example, the developer may need to know the types of devices running the game to determine how to support game updates on an ongoing basis. Some data collected by Unity Analytics may be used by Unity Ads for personalized advertising; see the FAQs related to advertising for more information.

I received an ad from Unity Ads, what do I need to know?

Unity Ads has probably collected device information, like IP address and device identifiers, and information regarding the delivery of ads and your interaction with them, all of which may be shared with ad publishers and attribution companies. For clarity, Unity collects the following data: whether you click or tap an ad for a new game, whether you watch the ad or play a game frequently, whether others playing a game like the one you’re playing have downloaded a particular new game, and whether you download and install the new game you see advertised. All of this is for purposes of predicting the types of new games that you might like to download. Unity may track additional data about you in the future for purposes of making these types of predictions, and we will notify you prior to new data collection.

Do I have any choices regarding the data collection described above if I do not wish to see personalized ads?

If you are in the EU and do not wish to be targeted in this manner, the first Unity ad you see in an app (as of May 25, 2018) explains how you can opt-out of data collection in that particular game. You can opt-out then or at any time by clicking or tapping the “ℹ” button (or Data Privacy icon) on any ad you see (the “ℹ” button or Data Privacy icon will also allow you to access the data that is collected about you in that particular app). For example, you might see a summary   that includes information indicating that  we see that you are using an iPhone 8 and you are playing from Germany. In the past week we’ve seen you 5 times in this game and have shown you 27 ads. You have installed 0 games based on those ads.

(Additionally, all users, regardless of their location, may opt-out of all personalized advertising by enabling privacy features on their devices such as Limit Ad Tracking (iOS) and Opt Out of Ads Personalization (Android). See your device’s Help system for more information.)

Also, you may see certain “brand” advertising within our ad network (a brand ad is advertising for products that are not games, such as ads for an airline travel deal or a soft drink). Unity gets these ads from third-party networks. We do not permit these third parties to add your app usage to their marketing database, except for a few exceptions, which we specifically list in the Advertising Choices section of our Privacy Policy. The small subset of third parties listed are clearly noted as being permitted by our contracts to use the fact that you play a particular game in their future targeting of ads to you for other non-Unity parties.  The remaining parties listed have been clearly noted as not permitted to maintain data about the ad they served you through the Unity network for future use.  Please note that if you have told Unity not to target you or you have exercised choices directly with these third parties as described in our Advertising Choices section, this information will not be maintained or used by us or these third parties. Please note that if you have elected to not have your data collected by Unity, we do not send your advertising identifier to any third party, and you will receive only contextual advertising inside our network. You may also visit the third parties listed in our Privacy Policy (at the links we provide) to see the types of data that these parties have about you based on your device’s advertising identifier. Please review the section “What are my privacy choices for advertising?” below to learn more about how to exercise choice with regard to personalized ads.

What are device identifiers (like IDFA or fingerprints) and why do you collect them?

Like many other providers of mobile apps, instead of requiring users to create an account and log in to it each time they access one of our apps, Unity and others using our products may opt to recognize the user’s device through various device identifiers. Device identifiers are also used for functions that require Unity to recognize devices across various apps.