Privacy Policy
Last updated: 10 November 2026
Autumn Term ("we", "us") makes Autumn Term, the game in the Long Room at www.autumnterm.com. This policy explains what personal information we collect when you play, why, who sees it, how long we keep it and what your rights are. We have tried to keep it plain. If anything is unclear, write to team@autumnterm.com.
1. What we collect
| Information | What it is and why we need it |
|---|---|
| Your email address | To sign you in (we email you a six-digit code), to send a winner their prize, to reply if you write to us, and to tell you about something important about your account. We never show it to other players. |
| Your handle | The name you choose. It appears on the leaderboard with how far you have got. Please do not use your real name. |
| Your date of birth and gender | Asked once when you sign up. Your date of birth tells us you are old enough to play and whether a parent or guardian needs to confirm a prize. Neither is shown to other players. |
| Your place on the waitlist | Before a race opens: your place in line, your university if you signed up with a university email, and how many friends joined with your link. |
| Your progress in the room | The steps you have completed, each try at a puzzle (whether it was right, and when, but never what you tried), and the room as you left it (where you stood and what you had opened), so you can carry on where you left off and so we can check the winner. |
| Where you finished | If you take the card, your place and the time, and for the first player the checks we make before the prize is sent (such as the account's age, the order of the steps and the pace of the run). |
| Invites | The link you share carries your own code, so a friend who joins with it is credited to you. We never read your contacts. |
| Gameplay analytics | Events such as opening the room, reaching a step or leaving, with your device type and how smoothly the room runs, recorded against a random ID, never your email. We use them to see what works, what is slow and where people get stuck. |
| Technical data | Your IP address, browser and device type and error information, in our server logs, to keep the service running, secure and free of abuse. |
We do not collect payment details (the game is free), your real-world location, contacts, photographs, microphone or camera. We do not run advertising, we do not sell your information and we do not use it to build advertising profiles.
2. Why we use it, and our legal basis
- To provide the game you asked for (your account, saving your progress, the race and its leaderboard, sending a prize): this is needed to perform our agreement with you (the Terms).
- To keep the game safe and working and to improve it (security, preventing cheating and abuse, checking a winning run, fixing faults, understanding how the game is played): this is our legitimate interest. We keep what we use to a minimum and you can object (see section 7).
- To meet legal duties, for example if the law requires us to keep or hand over information.
- With your consent, if we ever ask for it for something optional (such as updates by email). You can withdraw it at any time.
3. Who sees your information
- Other players see your handle and how far you have got on the leaderboard. Nobody else sees your email, your date of birth or your tries.
- Our service providers who process it for us: Amazon Web Services (hosting and storage), and our email service (which delivers your sign-in codes and a winner's prize code). They may only use it to provide their service to us.
- Authorities or advisers where the law requires, or to protect the safety of players or our rights.
We do not sell personal information or share it for advertising.
4. Where it is stored
Our database and files are hosted in the European Union (Ireland). If information is ever transferred outside the European Economic Area, we will make sure it is protected by an approved safeguard.
5. How long we keep it
- Your account: until you ask us to delete it.
- A race's records (your steps, tries and their times, your saved room, where you finished): for 12 months after the race ends, so we can answer questions about its result; a winner's record and prize for as long as the law requires.
- Sign-in codes: ten minutes. Sign-in sessions: they expire after a period of inactivity and you can sign out at any time.
- Server and error logs: about 30 days.
- Gameplay analytics: up to 24 months, then deleted or made anonymous.
- Backups: deleted information may remain in encrypted backups for up to 14 days.
6. Cookies and similar technologies
We do not use advertising or tracking cookies. The game stores a small amount of information in your browser (local storage) that it needs to work: it keeps you signed in and remembers your settings and where you were in the room. Our pages load a font from Google Fonts, which means your browser contacts Google when a page loads, and Google receives your IP address.
7. Your rights
Under data protection law you can ask us to:
- tell you what we hold about you, and give you a copy;
- correct anything that is wrong;
- delete your account and your information;
- restrict how we use it, or object to our use of it (including the analytics);
- give you your information in a portable format;
- stop any use that relies on your consent.
Email team@autumnterm.com from the address on your account. We may need to check it is you, and we will reply within one month. Your handle is permanent while your account exists, but deleting your account removes it.
If you are unhappy with how we have handled your information, you can complain to the Data Protection Commission in Ireland (dataprotection.ie) or to your local data protection authority.
8. Children
Autumn Term is for players aged 16 and over, or aged 13 to 15 with the permission of a parent or guardian. It is not for children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect their information. If you are a parent and think a child under 13 has an account, write to us and we will delete it. If a winner is under 18, we ask a parent or guardian to confirm before the prize is sent. Players should never share their real name, address or other personal details in a handle.
9. Security
Information is encrypted while it travels between your device and our servers and while it is stored. Access is limited to the people who need it. No system is completely secure, so please keep your email account safe, because a sign-in code goes there. If something goes wrong that affects your information, we will tell you and the authorities as the law requires.
10. Changes to this policy
If we change what we collect or how we use it we will update this page and its date, and tell you in the game if the change is important.
11. Contact
Autumn Term, team@autumnterm.com.
See also our Terms and Conditions.