CA-C-001397
Unreal Engine — Epic Games Privacy Policy
Entity
Date detected
April 23, 2026
Effective date
April 23, 2026
Severity
Low
Direction
Neutral
Affected users
minors parents/guardians
Taxonomy
Transparency removal
Changes
+11 sentences added · 26 sentences modified
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Event Summary

Epic Games updated its privacy policy on April 23, 2026 with clarifications focused on how it collects and uses data from children's accounts (called Cabined Accounts). The policy now specifies that persistent identifiers like IP addresses and device IDs are used for authentication, security, and service improvement, and adds language stating these identifiers are not repurposed for other uses. Language also shifted from 'child user' to 'child' throughout, and removed a previous statement about deleting personal information after inquiry resolution.

LOW

Consumer Impact

The updated policy clarifies how Epic Games collects and uses persistent identifiers (IP addresses, device IDs, account IDs) for children's accounts. The revised language specifies that these identifiers are used for authentication, security, analytics, and service personalization, and adds an explicit statement that technical and organizational means are in place to ensure these identifiers are not repurposed for other uses. Parent email addresses are collected for notice and consent but are no longer stated to be automatically deleted after 14 days if the parent does not respond.

Governance Analysis

The updated policy clarifies technical and organizational safeguards for children's persistent identifiers while removing an explicit retention commitment for parent contact information. Under youth privacy frameworks like COPPA, clarity on how long parent data is retained and under what conditions it is deleted is operationally significant for compliance. The removal of the 14-day deletion promise may require Epic Games to document and disclose its actual retention practice.

If No Action Is Taken

Parent email addresses collected during the account creation process will be retained according to Epic's practices, which are no longer explicitly stated to include a 14-day deletion period.

Children's persistent identifiers (IP addresses, device IDs) will continue to be collected for authentication, security, and analytics as described in the updated policy.

Key Clauses Affected

Persistent Identifier Use and Safeguards

Updated language specifies that persistent identifiers (IP address, device IDs, account IDs) are used for authentication, security, analytics, and personalization; adds explicit statement that technical and organizational means ensure these identifiers are not repurposed.

Parent Contact Information Retention

Removed previous commitment that parent email would be deleted after 14 days of non-response; updated language no longer specifies retention or deletion timeline.

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This change record describes what was added, removed, or modified in the document. Analysis reflects what the updated agreement states or permits. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Applicability may vary by jurisdiction. Methodology

Evidence Verification

✓ Verified
Previous Version
61b0b1cd41c5c1817ed04e6fdf9a07d2919cac9db606c6d2c4731b4d8108599e
April 19, 2026 06:06 UTC
✓ Verified
Current Version
31bb31d5822c646ffd9ec3b27da84d739f1b4dc07f765f4bb26d1f091cf90e9d
April 23, 2026 06:08 UTC
✓ Verified
Change Detected
April 23, 2026 06:08 UTC
Analysis Methodology
Citation Record
Entity: Unreal Engine
Document: Epic Games Privacy Policy
Record ID: CA-C-001397
Captured: 2026-04-23 06:08:14 UTC
URL: https://conductatlas.com/change/2026-04-23-unreal-engine-epic-games-privacy-policy-1397/
Accessed: May 13, 2026
Permanent archival reference. Stable identifier suitable for legal filings, compliance documentation, and research citation.

Impact Summary

1
Protection removed
Parents Removed

The policy no longer explicitly commits to deleting parent contact information after a set non-response period; the new language does not specify what happens to parent email addresses if they do not respond to the initial notice.

For legal and compliance teams

Institutional Analysis

Assessment

Epic Games revised language governing data collection and use for children's accounts (Cabined Accounts) under applicable youth privacy laws. The changes clarify the purposes for which persistent identifiers are collected and add an explicit safeguard stating these identifiers are not used for other purposes. A previous provision stating parent contact information would be deleted after 14 days of non-response was removed and replaced with clarified notice and consent language. This update may reflect compliance with youth privacy regulations (such as COPPA in the US and equivalent frameworks in other jurisdictions) and clarifies Epic's technical and organizational safeguards. No new obligations appear to have been created; rather, existing practices are clarified.

Regulatory Exposure

COPPA (Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, 16 CFR Part 312), GDPR (EU General Data Protection Regulation, Articles 8 and 40 regarding child data protection), UK GDPR (UK General Data Protection Regulation), equivalent youth privacy laws in other jurisdictions

Full compliance analysis

Obligation analysis, escalation trigger, board language, and recommended action.

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ConductAtlas provides verified policy intelligence sourced directly from platform documents. All analysis is intended to support, not replace, legal and compliance review. Record CA-C-001397.

Full Changes

See the full side-by-side comparison of every sentence added, removed, and modified.

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Document Context

Version history → Policy drift analysis → Document page →
Document
Epic Games Privacy Policy
Entity
Unreal Engine
Captured
April 23, 2026
Source URL
https://www.epicgames.com/site/en-US/privacypolicy
Other changes to Epic Games Privacy Policy
Previous change Apr 19, 2026
Epic Games updated contact email addresses across its privacy policy, consolidating multiple department-specific addresses into centralized support emails. Previously, users …
Low Neutral
Next change May 1, 2026
Unreal Engine updated its privacy policy contact information on May 1, 2026, replacing old email addresses with new ones across …
Low Neutral
View full version history →
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