Your data stays
on your phone.
SideSpin is local-first. We run no app-data servers and include no analytics or advertising SDKs. This page explains exactly what the app touches, and when.
Last updated · 27 October 2026 · Contact · support@side-spin.com · Package · com.sidespin.app
1. Summary, in plain English
- All your game data is stored locally on your device, in the app's private storage, which Android isolates from other apps and encrypts with the device. SideSpin does not add its own database encryption.
- We run no app-data servers. There is no cloud database holding your data.
- We do not sell or share your personal information with any third party.
- We include no analytics SDKs — no Firebase Analytics, no Google Analytics, no Mixpanel.
- No ads: SideSpin includes no advertising SDK and shows no ads on any plan.
- Optional features that involve other services — Google Sign-In for Drive backup, Google Play Billing for purchases, Nearby Connections for partner sync, Google Cast for showing the scoreboard on a TV — run only when you actively use them.
2. What the app collects
2.1 Information you enter
- Player names or nicknames you type for yourself and your playing partners.
- Game data — frame scores, breaks, fouls, timestamps, durations, match formats, head-to-head history.
- Club or membership notes you choose to enter — plan name, hours, price, expiry.
- Tally amounts, if you use the optional tally feature — stored as plain numeric points with no currency interpretation. Amounts stay on your device unless you export, back up or co-score.
All of the above is stored only on your device, in the app's private storage area (unless you export, share, back up to Drive, or co-score with another phone).
Phone number (optional). If you enter your phone number in your profile, the number itself is kept on your device (private app storage) and is never sent to us. SideSpin also stores an unsalted one-way hash (SHA-256) of it with your player record, to recognise you across devices and clubs. That hash goes into your Google Drive backup (your own private Drive folder) but is never included in files you export or share. A hash of a phone number can be recovered by guessing numbers, so treat it as personal data.
2.2 Collected automatically
- Basic device info the Android OS exposes to every app (Android version, device model) — used only for normal operation.
- App preferences (theme, language), stored locally.
- On-device features. Plan reminders are local notifications scheduled on your phone, spoken scoring uses Android's text-to-speech, and share images you save are written to your Photos gallery. None of these send anything to us.
- Trial and entitlement state — trial start time, acknowledgement flags, and purchase tokens needed to unlock Pro, stored locally (purchase tokens in encrypted preferences).
- Error report after an unexpected close. If the app stops working, it saves a short technical report (the error, app version, device model and Android version, never your game data) in its private storage on your phone. On the next start it asks whether to email that report to us; it is sent only if you choose to, through your own email app, and is deleted from the phone either way. There is no crash-reporting SDK in the app.
2.3 What we do not collect
- No location, contacts, camera or microphone, and the app never reads your photos.
- No analytics SDKs — no Firebase Analytics, no Google Analytics, no AppsFlyer, no Mixpanel.
- We do not operate an account system or central profile database.
3. Optional features that involve other services
Each of these is off by default and runs only when you actively use it.
3.1 Google Play Billing
Used when you subscribe to SideSpin Pro (monthly, yearly or a one-time purchase) or the Venue plan. Google Play handles the entire transaction; we receive only a purchase token and product identifier to grant the entitlement on your device. See Google's privacy policy.
3.2 Google Sign-In + Drive backup
If you enable Drive backup, the app requests scoped access to your own Drive appDataFolder only — a private area only the app can read. Your data is exported as JSON into that folder so you can restore it later. Sign-in asks Google for your account email and an ID token, which stay with Google and your device. The app cannot read your other Drive files, and you can revoke access at any time at myaccount.google.com.
3.3 Nearby Connections (partner co-scoring)
Co-scoring with a partner's phone uses Google's Nearby Connections API (Bluetooth / Wi-Fi) to find devices in your immediate physical proximity. No data passes through Google's servers — frames are exchanged directly device-to-device, and discovery is active only while the pairing / co-score flow is open. Android 12+ uses the Bluetooth permissions; older versions require fine location for Bluetooth scanning, but the app does not read or store your location.
3.4 Google Play Install Referrer
If a friend invites you by QR code, the install link carries a short opaque token. On first launch the app reads it via the Install Referrer API to pre-fill your inviter's name as your partner. The token is stored locally, used once, and contains no personal information about you.
3.5 Venue mode
On a device set up for a table or club (Venue mode), the app stores each player's PIN only as a salted, one-way verifier (PBKDF2) on that device, to protect their identity and stats. No PIN is stored in plain text. If you use Drive backup, the verifier is included in the backup inside your own private Drive app folder so a restore keeps your players' PINs; it is never included in files you export or share, and it is never sent to us.
3.6 Google Cast (scoreboard on a TV)
If you tap Cast to TV, the app uses Google's Cast SDK to find Chromecast and Google TV devices on your Wi-Fi network and show the live scoreboard on the one you pick. The TV loads SideSpin's scoreboard page from side-spin.com/cast, and the phone sends it the board (player names, scores and the shot clock) over your local network. Your phone stays the scoreboard: you keep scoring on it, and the TV only displays.
Google's Cast SDK also sends Google anonymised usage data about casting (device-discovery and session events, basic device and app information). Google uses it, in aggregate, to improve casting; it is encrypted in transit and not shared with third parties. It contains no scores or player names, and SideSpin never receives it. The Cast SDK is not started until the first time you tap Cast to TV; after that it starts with the app so it can reconnect to your TV. See Google's Cast data disclosure and Google's privacy policy.
4. How the data is used
Solely to display your scores, statistics, history and ledger inside the app; to generate shareable match cards only when you tap Share; to sync between devices only when you initiate it; and to unlock Pro based on Google Play purchase state. We do not profile users, perform automated decision-making, or use your data to train AI models.
5. Data sharing
We do not share, sell, rent or transmit your data to any third party. The only outbound traffic the app can generate:
| Destination | When | What is sent |
|---|---|---|
| Google Play Billing | When you subscribe or purchase | The purchase flow, handled entirely by Google |
| Your own Google Drive | When you tap “Back up” | A JSON snapshot, into your private app folder |
| A device near you | When you tap “Sync with partner” | Game and pair data, peer-to-peer, not via the internet |
| Google Play | Once, on first launch | A request to read the install-referrer token |
| Your TV (Chromecast / Google TV) | While you cast | The live scoreboard, over your local network |
| Google (Cast SDK) | After your first Cast to TV | Anonymised casting usage data (see 3.6) |
The app makes no other network requests.
6. Retention and deletion
- All your data lives on your device. Uninstalling the app deletes everything.
- Settings → Delete all my data permanently clears local SideSpin data: the database, your profile (including a stored phone number), drafts, reminders and exported copies. It keeps the purchase / plan cache and tier hint (purchases belong to your Google account and can be restored), the free-trial clock, the device mode (personal or venue) and, on a venue device, the table's own setup (name, games, owner PIN verifier, timeouts). A Google Drive backup is a separate copy and stays until you remove it, and share images you saved to your Photos gallery cannot be removed by the app, so delete those in your gallery.
- Drive backups remain in your private Drive app folder until you remove them: drive.google.com → Settings → Manage apps → SideSpin.
- You can clear data any time from Android Settings → Apps → SideSpin → Storage → Clear data.
7. Children
The app is not directed at children under 13 (or the minimum age in your country) and we do not knowingly collect data from them. If you believe a child has provided personal information through the app, contact us and we will help you delete it from the device.
8. Security
Local data sits in the app's sandboxed private storage, isolated by Android from other apps; entitlement and trial preferences use encrypted storage where implemented. Drive backups travel over HTTPS via Google's official SDK; Nearby sessions use the Google Nearby SDK's pairing protections. No system is perfectly secure — keep your device updated and use a screen lock.
9. Your rights
Because your data is stored locally, you already control it:
- Access — open the app; everything we have is on the screen.
- Export — use the in-app Export (CSV), or a JSON backup, to take your data with you.
- Delete — Settings → Delete all my data, or uninstall.
- Withdraw consent for Drive or Nearby — disable in Settings, or revoke at myaccount.google.com. Stop using Cast to TV, or clear the app's data, to stop Cast usage data.
If you are a resident of the EU/UK (GDPR), India (DPDP Act 2023) or California (CCPA), you have the right to access, correct, port and delete your personal information. Because we hold no personal data on our own servers, these rights are exercised directly on your device as described above. For anything further, email the contact at the top of this page.
10. Changes
If this policy materially changes, we will update the date above and show an in-app notice on next launch.
11. Contact
Privacy questions: support@side-spin.com
SideSpin is an independent app. It is not affiliated with the World Snooker Tour, the WPBSA, or any snooker club.