ThumbBout privacy
Last updated: October 4, 2026
Short version: we collect nothing. There is no server to collect it on.
What we collect
Nothing. ThumbBout has no accounts, no sign-in, no analytics, no advertising, no crash reporter and no third-party SDKs. We do not run a backend for the games, so we never receive your messages, your names, your drawings or your scores.
Where your games live
A ThumbBout game is stored inside the iMessage bubble itself. When you take a turn, the new position travels in the message to the other people in the chat, over iMessage, exactly like any other message. That means Apple's Messages service carries it and Apple's privacy policy covers that part. We never see it.
The bubble's link points at thumbbout.com so the message makes sense on a device without the app. The page it opens is static. It does not read, log or store the game data in the link.
What stays on your phone
- Your display name, chosen mascot, trophies, records and settings, so the app can remember you.
- Which seat you took in each game, and the games in flight in a chat, so a bubble opens where you left off.
This is kept in the app's own storage on your device (and in an App Group shared between the Messages extension and the ThumbBout app). It is never uploaded by us. Deleting the app deletes it.
Names, drawings and words in games
What you type or draw in a game (a caption, a ranking, a sketch) goes into the bubble and is visible to the other people in that chat, the way any message is. Only put into a game what you would say to that group.
Art, words and permissions
The mascots and game art in the app were generated ahead of time, before release, and ship inside the app. The app does not send anything to an image service while you use it. Word lists and question decks also ship inside the app, so everything works offline. ThumbBout does not ask for your contacts, location, camera, microphone or photos.
Children
We collect no personal information from anyone, including children. Some optional decks, like the one marked 18+, are off unless the people in the chat switch them on.
Changes and contact
If this ever changes, this page changes first and the date above moves. Questions: noahjameshall@gmail.com.