● HARDWOOD

Legal

Privacy Policy

Last updated: November 2025

This policy explains what data Hardwood Machine ("we", "us") collects when you use hardwoodmachine.trade, why we collect it, and what your choices are. We try to keep the site as low-tracking as possible — but we do serve ads via Google AdSense, and you should know how that works.

1. What we collect

The trade builder, GM Challenge, and Theme Squad games run entirely in your browser. We do not require an account and we do not store the trades or rosters you build on our servers.

Our own server logs record the standard fields any web server records — IP address, user agent, referring URL, and requested path — for a short window, for security and abuse prevention. We do not sell these logs.

2. Cookies and local storage

We use browser local storage to remember your last trade proposal and your daily-challenge progress. These values never leave your device.

3. Advertising (Google AdSense)

When advertising is enabled, Hardwood Machine serves ads through Google AdSense. Google and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to serve ads based on your prior visits to this site and other sites on the internet.

  • Google's use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads based on your visits to our site and other sites.
  • You may opt out of personalised advertising by visiting Google Ads Settings.
  • You may opt out of some third-party vendors' use of cookies for personalised advertising at aboutads.info.
  • For users in the EEA, UK, and Switzerland, Google uses a consent-management platform to request your consent for personalised ads. If you decline, you will still see ads, but they will be non-personalised.

4. Analytics

We may use privacy-respecting analytics (e.g. anonymised page-view counts) to understand what content readers find useful. We do not use analytics that build cross-site profiles.

5. Third-party data sources

The site pulls public data from third parties (balldontlie, ESPN, public cap sources) to display rosters, salaries, and league news. Those services have their own privacy policies. We do not share your personal data with them; requests to those APIs are made from our servers, not from your browser.

6. Your rights

Depending on where you live, you may have rights under GDPR, UK GDPR, CCPA, or similar laws to access, correct, or delete personal data we hold about you. Because we don't require accounts, in most cases we simply hold nothing tied to your identity. To make a request, email us using the contact page.

7. Children

Hardwood Machine is a general-audience site and is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13.

8. Changes to this policy

When we update this policy we'll change the "last updated" date at the top of the page. Material changes will be flagged on the homepage for at least seven days.