Privacy Policy

Introduction

Geography Master is a free interactive geography quiz game operated by Cesare Moiola (the "Site Operator"). This Privacy Policy explains how the site collects, uses, and protects information when you use it. It also describes your rights under the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and similar laws.

For details of every cookie or storage key the site sets, see the separate Cookie Policy.

Information collected by the site itself

Geography Master does not require account creation and does not collect personal information such as names, email addresses, or phone numbers.

The site stores the following non-personal information locally in your browser:

• Theme preference — your light/dark mode choice is stored in localStorage and never leaves your device.
• Consent state — your choices in the cookie consent banner are stored locally by Google's Funding Choices CMP for approximately 13 months, after which you will be asked again.

The site does not run a server-side database of users, does not log IP addresses, and does not use server-side analytics tied to individual visitors. Anonymous, aggregated analytics (page-view counts via Vercel Analytics) are used to monitor traffic levels; these do not identify you.

Information collected by third parties

Google AdSense

The site displays advertisements served by Google AdSense on certain pages. Google AdSense and its partners may use cookies and similar technologies to serve ads, measure ad performance, and (where you have given consent) personalise ads based on your browsing activity. Personalised advertising requires your explicit consent under the GDPR; non-personalised advertising relies on a balancing of legitimate interests where consent is not given.

You can manage these choices at any time by reopening the cookie banner using the Manage consent button (also available on the Cookie Policy page), or by visiting Google Ads Settings. For full details of how Google uses data, see Google's Privacy & Terms.

Google Funding Choices (Consent Management Platform)

Google's Funding Choices CMP renders the GDPR/CCPA cookie consent banner you see when you visit the site from a region where consent is required. It uses localStorage to remember your choice for approximately 13 months. The CMP also exposes the IAB Transparency & Consent Framework (TCF v2) signal that tells AdSense and other ad partners which purposes you have consented to.

Vercel Analytics & Speed Insights

The site is hosted on Vercel and uses Vercel's privacy-friendly Analytics and Speed Insights products. These collect anonymous, aggregated data about page views and page load performance. They do not use cookies and do not identify individual visitors.

Lawful basis for processing (GDPR Article 6)

For visitors covered by the GDPR (the EEA, UK, and Switzerland), the lawful basis for each form of processing is:

• Theme preference (localStorage) — legitimate interest in providing a usable site (Art. 6(1)(f)).
• Personalised advertising via AdSense — your explicit consent given via the cookie banner (Art. 6(1)(a)). You can withdraw consent at any time.
• Non-personalised advertising via AdSense — legitimate interest in funding the free service (Art. 6(1)(f)), where consent for personalisation is not given.
• Aggregate analytics (Vercel) — legitimate interest in monitoring site availability and performance (Art. 6(1)(f)). No cookies are set; no individual identification occurs.

Your rights under the GDPR

If you are in the EEA, UK, or Switzerland, you have the following rights:

• Right of access (Art. 15) — you may ask what information the Site Operator holds about you. The honest answer is: nothing personal. The site does not maintain a user database.
• Right to rectification (Art. 16) — you may ask for any inaccurate information about you to be corrected.
• Right to erasure (Art. 17) — you may ask for any information about you to be deleted. Since the site does not store personal information, this mainly applies to anything you have shared by emailing the contact address below.
• Right to restriction (Art. 18) and portability (Art. 20).
• Right to object (Art. 21) — you may object to any processing based on legitimate interest. This includes non-personalised advertising; objecting will generally cause AdSense to stop loading on your device.
• Right to withdraw consent (Art. 7(3)) — you may revoke any consent you have given. Use the Manage consent button to reopen the cookie banner and change your choices.
• Right to lodge a complaint with your national data protection authority. The full list of authorities is published by the European Data Protection Board.

To exercise any of these rights, email cesaremoiola@gmail.com. Requests will be answered within 30 days as required by Art. 12(3).

International data transfers

Google AdSense and Vercel both process data in the United States and other countries outside the EEA. Google relies on the EU-US Data Privacy Framework and on Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) for these transfers, as required by the GDPR. Vercel similarly relies on SCCs (see the Vercel Privacy Policy).

Data retention

The site itself retains nothing personal. Theme preferences and consent state remain in your browser's localStorage until you clear them or until the consent record naturally expires (~13 months). Google and Vercel apply their own retention policies to the data they collect; see their respective privacy policies for details.

Cookies

A complete list of cookies and storage keys set on your device, with purpose and duration, is provided on the Cookie Policy page.

Children's privacy

Geography Master is a general-audience educational game and is not directed at children under 16. The site does not knowingly collect any personal information from children. Under the GDPR (Art. 8), processing of personal data of children under 16 (or a lower age set by an EU member state, down to 13) is only lawful with parental consent — since the site does not collect personal information from anyone, this does not apply in practice.

Changes to this policy

This policy may be updated from time to time. Material changes will be reflected here with an updated revision date at the top of the page. Continued use of the site after changes are published constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

Contact

Questions, concerns, or requests under any of the rights above can be sent to cesaremoiola@gmail.com. The Contact page has additional details and links.