Privacy Policy
1. Introduction
CaribouGames ("we", "us", "our") operates BamBuddies and is committed to protecting your personal information. This policy explains what data we collect, how we use it, and your rights regarding your information.
By using BamBuddies you agree to the collection and use of information as described in this policy.
2. Information we collect
Information you provide directly
- Account information: name, email address, phone number, password
- Profile information: player level, profile picture
- Home address (used only for proximity calculations — never displayed to other users)
- Saved locations you add to your account
- Messages sent in game and group threads
- Game-related content: games created, invites sent, responses provided
Information collected automatically
- Device information and operating system
- App usage data and feature interactions
- Push notification tokens for iOS devices
- IP address and general location
Information accessed on your device (with permission)
- Contacts. If you grant Contacts permission and tap "Smart Invite" or "Talk to Bam" in the Create-Game flow, the names (and optionally email or phone) of the contacts you select are read on-device and sent to our servers only for the purpose described in section 4 below. We do not bulk-upload your address book, and we do not store it.
- Precise location. If you grant Location permission, your device's location is used to filter the Discover tab to games near you. Location is sent to our servers only at the moment of a Discover query and is not stored against your account.
Information from third parties
If you sign in with Google, Facebook, or Apple, we receive your name, email address, and optionally your profile picture from that provider. We store only what is necessary to create and manage your account. OAuth access tokens are stored encrypted.
Apple Sign In: If you choose to hide your email address, Apple provides a relay email address. We use this relay address for all platform communications and never see your real Apple email address.
3. How we use your information
- To provide, operate, and improve BamBuddies
- To send notifications you have requested (game invites, confirmations, reminders)
- To calculate proximity for open game discovery — your address is used server-side only and never exposed to other users
- To show your profile (name, player level, avatar) to other players in games and groups you share
- To contact you about your account or our service
- To power the in-app AI features described in section 4
4. AI features and data sharing with Anthropic
BamBuddies uses Anthropic's Claude API to power two opt-in features. Both run server-to-server (your device → our API → Anthropic). We do not share data with any other AI or machine-learning vendor.
Smart Invite / Talk to Bam (Create-Game flow)
When you invoke this feature, the prompt you type is sent to Anthropic along with the contextual data the assistant needs to resolve the names you reference and produce a game suggestion. That contextual data is:
- Your display name and IANA timezone
- Selected device contacts (name, and optionally email or phone)
- Your favorite contacts (name, email, phone)
- Members of your groups (name, email, phone)
- Your saved locations (label and address)
- Optionally, your home address if you have one saved
Ask Bam (Help Center chat)
The prompt you type is sent to Anthropic along with your display name and your role flags (whether you are an organizer or platform admin). Contacts, favorites, group members, and location data are not sent for this feature.
Retention and use
Anthropic operates these requests under a zero-retention agreement: the data is used only to serve the request and is not retained, used to train models, or used for any other purpose. We do not log the contents of these requests on our servers beyond the minimum needed to debug failed requests, and any such debug logs are purged within 30 days.
5. Information we do NOT share
- Your home address — never shared with other users, ever
- Your phone number — used only for SMS notifications you request
- Your full address for a game location — only revealed to confirmed participants after game confirmation
- We do not sell your personal data to third parties
- We do not share personal data with advertisers
6. SMS / Text message communications
BamBuddies may send you SMS (text) messages related to your account and games — game invitations, group invitations, game confirmations, player communications, and game reminders. The SMS program is operated through our messaging provider (Twilio).
What we collect for SMS
- Your phone number (provided by you at sign-up or in your profile)
- Your SMS opt-in timestamp and the source of consent (e.g. registration checkbox)
- Your SMS opt-out timestamp, if you have opted out
- A record of messages sent to you through the program (delivery status, timestamps, and message identifiers)
How we use SMS data
SMS data is used solely to operate the BamBuddies SMS notification program — to send you the notifications you have opted in to receive, to honor opt-out requests, and to maintain delivery records required by our messaging provider and U.S. carriers.
No third-party sharing for marketing
We do not share your phone number or SMS opt-in/opt-out data with third parties or affiliates for marketing or promotional purposes. Your phone number is shared with our messaging provider (Twilio) and with the underlying mobile carriers solely for the technical purpose of delivering the messages you have requested.
Opt-in
You opt in to receive SMS by checking the "I agree to receive SMS notifications from BamBuddies" checkbox during account registration, or by enabling SMS notifications in your in-app Profile & Settings page. SMS is never sent without your explicit, affirmative consent.
Opt-out
You can opt out of SMS at any time by:
- Replying STOP (or CANCEL, END, QUIT, UNSUBSCRIBE) to any BamBuddies SMS message
- Toggling SMS notifications off in your in-app Profile & Settings page
Reply HELP to any BamBuddies SMS for help. Message frequency varies. Message and data rates may apply per your carrier plan. Opt-out is honored immediately.
Friend-to-friend invites are not part of this program
When a BamBuddies organizer invites a friend to a game or group, the invite text message is sent from the organizer's own mobile phone via their device's native messaging app — not from BamBuddies' SMS program. Those messages are not subject to this SMS section because BamBuddies is not the sender; the organizer is, using the same channel they would use to text any of their personal contacts.
7. Advertising
BamBuddies does not currently show advertising in the iOS app. If we introduce advertising in a future version, we will update this policy first to disclose the ad networks involved and what (if any) data is shared with them. We do not allow advertisers to pay to have content promoted in conversations or to target you based on sensitive personal attributes.
8. Data retention
We retain your account data for as long as your account is active. If you delete your account, your personal data is deleted within 30 days. Game history and messages may be retained in anonymized form for platform analytics. Profile pictures are deleted from our storage immediately upon account deletion. Data sent to Anthropic for the AI features in section 4 is not retained by Anthropic and is not stored on our servers (see section 4).
9. Your rights
- Access the personal data we hold about you
- Correct inaccurate data
- Request deletion of your account and associated data
- Export your data in a portable format
- Opt out of non-essential communications
To exercise any of these rights, contact us at privacy@bambuddies.org.
10. Security
We use industry-standard security measures including encrypted data transmission (TLS), encrypted storage for sensitive fields (OAuth tokens), and access controls limiting who can view personal data. No method of transmission or storage is 100% secure — if you have security concerns, contact us immediately.
11. Children
BamBuddies is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect data from children under 13. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, contact us and we will delete it.
12. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy. We will notify you of material changes via email or in-app notification. Continued use of BamBuddies after changes constitutes acceptance.
13. Contact
CaribouGames · privacy@bambuddies.org · Contact form