5 Second Rule (the "Service") is a free, browser-based party game operated as an independent project. References to "we," "us," or "our" in this policy refer to the operator of this Service. If you have questions about this policy, see the contact page.

We try to collect as little as possible. The Service is designed to run in your browser without an account. The categories of data involved are:

Information you enter into the game

Player names, custom prompts, scores, and game settings are entered by you. This information is stored locally in your browser using localStorage or similar technology. It is not transmitted to us. Clearing your browser storage removes it.

Technical information collected automatically

Like most websites, our hosting infrastructure logs basic request data such as IP address, browser user-agent, referring page, and timestamp. This is used for security, abuse prevention, and aggregate traffic analysis.

Cookies and similar technologies

We may use cookies or local storage to remember your language preference, theme (light or dark), and any custom prompts you have created. Third-party services described below may also set cookies in your browser.

This site may display advertising provided by Google AdSense and other third-party vendors and ad networks. These third parties may use cookies, web beacons, and similar technologies to collect information about your visits to this and other websites in order to provide advertisements about goods and services that may interest you.

Google's use of advertising cookies

Google, as a third-party vendor, uses cookies to serve ads on this site. Google's use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads to users based on their visits to this site and/or other sites on the Internet.

Opting out

You may opt out of personalized advertising by visiting Google's Ads Settings, or you may opt out of a third-party vendor's use of cookies for personalized advertising by visiting www.aboutads.info. For users in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, or Switzerland, we use a Consent Management Platform to ask for consent before setting non-essential cookies, including those used for personalized advertising.

We may use privacy-friendly analytics tools to understand which pages are popular and how the Service is performing. Where used, analytics providers process IP addresses and basic browser metadata. We do not use analytics tools to identify individual visitors.

• To run the game and remember your preferences in your browser.
• To keep the Service secure and prevent abuse.
• To understand traffic patterns in aggregate.
• To display advertising, where applicable, in line with the section above.

We do not sell your personal information.

The 5 Second Rule game can be enjoyed by people of many ages, but the Service is not directed to children under 13 (or the equivalent minimum age in the user's jurisdiction). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. Parents who believe their child has provided personal information to us may contact us so that we can delete it.

Depending on your location, you may have rights under laws such as the EU/UK GDPR or the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), including:

• The right to access information we hold about you.
• The right to ask us to correct or delete that information.
• The right to object to or restrict certain processing.
• The right to withdraw consent for cookie-based processing.
• The right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority.

Because most game data lives only in your browser, the simplest way to exercise your rights over that data is to clear your site data or use your browser's privacy controls. For everything else, contact us.

Data stored locally in your browser remains until you remove it. Server logs are retained for a short period for security and reliability purposes and are then deleted or anonymized. We use industry-standard precautions to protect data, but no system can be guaranteed 100% secure.

The Service may be hosted on servers located outside your country of residence. By using the Service, you understand that information may be transferred to and processed in countries with different data protection laws.

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or for legal reasons. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page indicates when the most recent change was made. Continued use of the Service after any update constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.

Questions about this policy? See the contact page for the best way to reach us.