Cookie notice
A complete list of the cookies this site uses. There are five. None are used for advertising. None are shared with third parties for tracking purposes.
What is a cookie
A cookie is a small text file that a website stores in your browser. It usually contains a short identifier and an expiry date. Cookies are how a website remembers things between page loads — that you're logged in, that you've dismissed a banner, that you prefer dark mode. There's nothing inherently sinister about them, but they have been used aggressively for tracking and advertising, which is why most jurisdictions now require sites to disclose what they use.
What we use
The site uses five first-party cookies. "First-party" means they're set by PixelStronghold's own domain, not by an external service. We don't load any third-party tracking scripts, which means no third-party cookies are set when you load a page.
| Name | Purpose | Lifetime | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| ps_cookie_choice | Remembers whether you've accepted or declined the cookie banner, so we don't show it on every page load. | 180 days | Essential |
| ps_session | A short-lived session identifier used for the contact form's anti-abuse check. It's destroyed when you close your browser. | Session | Essential |
| ps_theme | Remembers if you toggled between standard and high-contrast theme. Only set if you actually use the toggle. | 365 days | Preference |
| ps_subscriber_ref | Set when a paid subscriber logs in, so we can show them the full archive without a second login. Only set on subscriber actions. | 30 days | Functional |
| ps_stats_id | A randomly generated identifier used by our own (first-party) reading-stats system, which counts page views in aggregate. Does not link to your identity. Set only after you accept the cookie banner. | 90 days | Analytics |
What we don't use
- No Google Analytics. No Meta Pixel. No Twitter / X pixel. No LinkedIn Insight.
- No advertising cookies of any kind. We don't run ads on this site.
- No third-party social embeds that drop cookies (we link to social platforms; we don't embed them).
- No cross-site tracking. No fingerprinting fallback when cookies are blocked.
Controlling cookies
You can decline our analytics cookie via the banner you see when you first visit. The essential and functional cookies (cookie choice, session, theme, subscriber reference) we set regardless, because the site cannot function without them.
You can also delete cookies at any time from your browser's settings. If you're not sure how, search the name of your browser plus "delete cookies" and you'll find an official guide. Deleting ps_cookie_choice resets your decision and brings the banner back.
Do Not Track
We respect the Global Privacy Control signal (GPC) and the older Do Not Track header. If your browser sends either, we skip the analytics cookie regardless of your banner choice.
Changes to this list
If we add a cookie, we update this table and mention the change in the next Friday brief. If we remove one, same. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page is always accurate.
Questions
Write to [email protected]. We read every email.