Privacy Policy

1. Who this policy covers

Sprout: Idle Little Garden (the “App”) is a cozy idle gardening game developed and published by Sawol (“we,” “us,” or “our”). This Privacy Policy explains how information is handled in the Android version of the App and on this policy webpage.

2. Information the App collects

Sprout does not require an account and Sawol does not operate a server that receives your garden save. The App includes the Google Mobile Ads SDK and Google’s User Messaging Platform (UMP), however, so limited information is transmitted to Google and may be shared by Google for advertising, analytics, and fraud-prevention purposes.

According to Google’s disclosure for the Google Mobile Ads SDK, the SDK automatically collects and shares:

• IP address, which may be used to estimate a device’s approximate or general location;
• user product interactions, such as app launches, taps, ad impressions, and video views;
• diagnostic information, such as app or SDK performance, launch time, hangs, and energy use; and
• device and account identifiers, which may include the Android advertising ID, app set ID, and, when applicable, other device-account identifiers.

Google states that these categories are used for advertising or marketing, analytics, and fraud prevention, security, and compliance. Sawol may view aggregated advertising reports in AdMob, but those reports are not connected to your local Sprout garden save. Sprout does not sell your local garden data.

3. Information stored on your device

To remember your garden, the App stores the following information locally in its private app storage:

• coins, XP, level, and whether the introduction has been seen;
• plants, decorations, scenes, helpers, weeds, Bag contents, placement, sizes, ranks, and task timers;
• the last-played time used to calculate limited offline helper progress; and
• your motion preference and limited ad-frequency state, such as when an interstitial was last shown.

The App reads your device’s current clock locally to display day or night and calculate garden progress while you are away. It may also read your device’s Reduce Motion preference. Neither is sent to Sawol.

4. Advertising and privacy choices

Sprout can show full-screen interstitial ads after you reach Level 5. Ads are considered only after a manual harvest, which is a natural pause in play. They are not triggered by helpers, offline progress, app launch, or opening a modal. Sprout applies a 10-minute cooldown and a maximum of two interstitials per app session.

Sprout currently requests non-personalized ads. This reduces ad personalization, but it does not mean that no data is processed: the Google Mobile Ads SDK may still transmit the categories described in Section 2 to deliver ads, measure performance, prevent fraud, and meet legal obligations.

Google UMP is used to request or update consent information and to show a consent message where required. The App provides a Privacy & Ads control so you can review available privacy choices. The options shown depend on your region, Google’s requirements, and the messages configured for Sprout in AdMob. You can also reset or delete the Android advertising ID in your device’s privacy settings.

Learn more in Google’s Privacy Policy, Google’s advertising information, and How Google uses information from apps that use its services.

5. Platform, advertising, backup, and hosting services

The following service providers may process information under their own terms and privacy policies:

• Google AdMob and UMP. Google provides advertising, consent-message, measurement, and fraud-prevention services. The Google Mobile Ads SDK and UMP may communicate with Google before or while ads are prepared or displayed, subject to the consent status and applicable law.
• Android backup. If device backup is enabled, Android or your device provider may back up and restore the App’s local files according to your device and account settings. Sawol does not receive or control those backups.
• Google Play. Google may process store activity, downloads, installation information, diagnostics, and other platform data when you obtain or use the App through Google Play. That processing is governed by Google’s Privacy Policy.
• Policy-page hosting. This webpage is intended to be hosted by Netlify. Like most web hosts, Netlify may process ordinary request information such as an IP address, browser details, requested page, and access time to deliver and secure the page. See Netlify’s Privacy Statement. Sawol has not added cookies, analytics, forms, or external scripts to this page.

6. Retention and deletion

Local garden data remains on your device until you use Start New Game in Settings, clear Sprout’s app storage, or uninstall the App. Start New Game deletes the current garden progress and begins a fresh local save. It does not necessarily reset consent records maintained through Google UMP or Android advertising settings. Use the in-app Privacy & Ads control for available choices, or clear the App’s storage to remove all locally stored Sprout data.

Android may later restore a backup if backup and restore are enabled; you can manage or delete device backups through your Android or Google account settings. Because Sprout has no Sawol account or developer-operated gameplay server, Sawol cannot view, recover, or remotely delete your local garden save.

Google determines retention for information processed by Google Mobile Ads and UMP under its policies. You can use Google and Android privacy controls described above. Sawol retains any aggregated AdMob reporting made available by Google only as reasonably needed to operate, secure, measure, and improve the App and its advertising.

If you voluntarily contact us, we use your message and the contact information you provide only to respond, address safety or support concerns, and meet legal obligations. We retain it only as long as reasonably necessary for those purposes, then delete or anonymize it. You may request deletion using the contact method below.

7. Children’s privacy

Sprout is intended for a general audience aged 13 and older and is not directed to children under 13. We do not knowingly create Sawol accounts or collect local garden saves from children. If you believe a child has sent personal information to Sawol through a support inquiry, please contact us so we can delete it.

8. Security

Garden data is kept in the App’s private local storage, protected by Android’s app sandbox. Network connections used by Google Mobile Ads and UMP use encrypted transport; Google states that data automatically collected by the Mobile Ads SDK is encrypted in transit with Transport Layer Security (TLS). No method of storage or transmission is completely secure.

9. Changes to this policy

We will update this policy and the App’s Google Play disclosures before releasing changes that materially affect information handling, such as new ad partners, mediation, analytics, cloud saves, accounts, or online purchases. The effective date at the top shows when this policy was last revised.

10. Contact Sawol

For privacy questions or deletion requests concerning information you voluntarily sent to support, contact Sawol at sawollog@gmail.com.