Our Cookie Policy lets you know what cookies are active on our site, what user data they track, for what purpose, and where in the world this data is sent.

What are Cookies?

Cookies are small pieces of data, stored in text files, that are stored on your computer or other device when websites are loaded in a browser. They are widely used to “remember” you and your preferences, either for a single visit (through a “session cookie”) or for multiple repeat visits (using a “persistent cookie”). They ensure a consistent and efficient experience for visitors, and perform essential functions such as allowing users to register and remain logged in. Cookies may be set by the site that you are visiting (known as “first party cookies”), or by third parties, such as those who serve content or provide advertising or analytics services on the website (“third party cookies”).

Both websites and HTML emails may also contain other tracking technologies such as “web beacons” or “pixels.” These are typically small transparent images that provide us with statistics, for similar purposes as cookies. They are often used in conjunction with cookies, though they are not stored on your computer in the same way. As a result, if you disable cookies, web beacons may still load, but their functionality will be restricted.

How We Use Cookies

We use cookies for a number of different purposes. Some cookies are necessary for technical reasons; some enable a personalised experience for both visitors and registered users; and some allow the display of advertising from selected third party networks. Some of these cookies may be set when a page is loaded, or when a visitor takes a particular action (clicking the “like” or “follow” button on a post, for example).

For more information on the choices you have about the cookies we use, please see the Controlling Cookies section below.

Where We Place Cookies

We set cookies in a number of different locations across our services. These include:

  • On our website.
  • On sites we host for our users.
  • In the emails we send.

Types of Cookie

The table below explains the types of cookies we use on our websites and why we use them.

Category of cookies Why we use these cookies
Required These cookies are essential for our websites and services to perform basic functions and are necessary for us to operate certain features. These include those required to allow registered users to authenticate and perform account-related functions, store preferences set by users such as account name, language, and location, and ensure our services are operating properly.
Analytics and Performance These cookies allow us to optimise performance by collecting information on how users interact with our websites, including which pages are visited most, as well as other analytical data. We use these details to improve how our websites function and to understand how users interact with them.
Advertising These cookies are set by us and our advertising partners to provide you with relevant content and to understand that content’s effectiveness. They may be used to collect information about your online activities over time and across different websites to predict your preferences and to display more relevant advertisements to you. These cookies also allow a profile to be built about you and your interests and enable personalised ads to be shown to you based on your profile.

Examples

Below are examples of the cookies we set, with explanations of their purpose. Some of these cookies are set across our whole network, whereas some are specific to individual services (e.g. WordPress.com). Please note that this is not an exhaustive list, but rather aims to be representative. Information about cookies that may be set by third parties, such as our ads partners, is below.

In addition, people and companies that use our services to publish or host their own sites may place additional cookies. We provide more information on these cookies below.

Required Cookies

Cookie Purpose
__ssid For processing payment and to aid in fraud detection.
__stripe_sid / __stripe_mid For processing payment and to aid in fraud detection.
_longreads_prod_new Authentication for Longreads.com Member accounts. Only active when logged in, on *.longreads.com domains.
akm_mobile Stores whether a user has chosen to view the mobile version of a website.
botdlang Used to track the language a user has selected to view popular blogs in.
country_code Used in order to determine whether or not the cookie banner should be shown. Set immediately on page load and retained for 6 hours to remember the visitor’s country.
csrftoken Python/Ajax security cookie used on accounts.longreads.com.
forterToken For processing payment and to aid in fraud detection.
landingpage_currency Defines the currency displayed in WordPress.com landing pages.
pd_dashboard Records last used folder in Crowdsignal dashboard so it can be reopened upon user’s next visit.
PD_USER_AUTH Login cookie used to identify Crowdsignal user.
sensitive_pixel_option Remembers the state of visitor acceptance to the cookie banner. Only set when the visitor clicks Accept.
twostep_auth Set when the user is logged in using two factor authentication.
wordpress_logged_in* Checks whether or not the current visitor is a logged in WordPress.com user.
wordpress_test_cookie Checks if cookies are enabled to provide appropriate user experience.
wp-settings-{user_id} Persists a user’s wp-admin configuration.
wp_sharing_{id} Tracks whether or not a user has already performed an action.

Analytics and Performance Cookies

Cookie Purpose
__pdvt Used in log of Crowdsignal survey data to aid in debugging customer problems.
_hjIncludedInSample
mp_6d7c50ad560e01715a871a117a2fbd90_mixpanel
optimizelyBuckets
optimizelyEndUserId
__hstc
hubspotutk
optimizelySegments		 Gathers information that helps us understand how visitors interact with our websites, which allows us to create a better visitor experience.
ab Used for “AB testing” of new features.
nux_flow_name Identifies which user signup flow was shown to the user.
tk_ni / tk_ai / tk_qs Gathers information for our own, first party analytics tool about how our services are used. A collection of internal metrics for user activity, used to improve user experience.
tk_*r Referral cookies used to analyse referrer behavior for Jetpack connected sites using WooCommerce.
wp-affiliate-tracker Remembers the ID of the affiliate that referred the current user to WordPress.com
utma / utmb / utmc / utmt / utmz / ga / gat / gid Google Analytics. Gathers information that helps us understand how visitors interact with our websites, which allow us to create a better experience for our visitors. Our users may also implement Google Analytics on their own websites.

Mobile Theme Cookies

Cookie Name Purpose
akm_mobile Remembers whether or not a user wishes to view the mobile version of a site.

Subscription Cookies

Cookie Name Purpose
jetpack_comments_subscribe_{HASH} Remembers the state of the post and comment subscription checkboxes.
jetpack_blog_subscribe_{HASH} Remembers the state of the post and comment subscription checkboxes.

Controlling Cookies

Visitors may wish to restrict the use of cookies or completely prevent them from being set. Most browsers provide for ways to control cookie behaviour such as the length of time they are stored – either through built-in functionality or by utilising third party plugins. If you disable cookies, please be aware that some of the features of our service may not function correctly.

To find out more on how to manage and delete cookies, visit aboutcookies.org. For more details on your choices regarding use of your web browsing activity for interest-based advertising you may visit the following sites:

On a mobile device, you may also be to adjust your settings to limit tracking.  

Consent for Advertising Cookies on Our Sites

You may see a “cookie banner” on our websites and dashboards. If you are visiting one of our sites from the EU, then we do not set, or allow our ad partners to set, cookies that are used to show you targeted ads before you click to accept. When you consent in this manner, we and our advertising partners may set advertising cookies on the site you are visiting and on our other websites, dashboards, and services, which we use to show you advertisements about our various products. We’ll display the banner to you periodically, just in case you change your mind.

Contact Us

If you have any questions about our use of cookies, you can find the most relevant contact details in our Contact Us page.