Cookie policy
Our own cookies
Reading articles, browsing the CPU database, using the Modkit calculators or the online HTML editor, and sending the contact form all work without a cookie from us.
The site sets two cookies of its own. One is a sign-in cookie for staff who use the admin dashboard: it is only created when someone signs in there, it cannot be read by scripts on the page, and it expires after 24 hours. Readers never receive it. The other, dld_thermcam, is set only when you answer the Microsoft Clarity question (see below). It holds "on" or "off" and lasts six months.
Microsoft Clarity
We use Microsoft Clarity for heatmaps and recordings of how pages are scrolled and clicked. Clarity sets its own cookies, such as _clck and _clsk, to link the pages of one visit, and Microsoft says they may also be used for its advertising. Visitors from the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom and Switzerland, and visitors whose location we cannot tell, are asked first, and Clarity sets no cookies for them unless they choose OK. You can change your answer with the "Cookie choices" button at the bottom of any page, by clearing the dld_thermcam cookie, or by turning on Global Privacy Control, which keeps Clarity off Delidded entirely. More in our privacy policy.
Cookies from other companies
Other companies' cookies can reach your browser in a few specific situations:
- You click an affiliate link. Links to shops in the CJ Affiliate network and to eBay take you to their sites, and they may set cookies to credit the referral and record a qualifying purchase. Clicking a MaxBounty advertiser banner works the same way once our server has counted the click; the banner image itself comes from our own server.
- A page shows a CJ banner. The banner image loads from CJ's servers, and CJ may read or set a cookie when it does.
- Cloudflare, which delivers and protects the site, runs a security check, including the Turnstile check on the contact form and the staff sign-in. In that case it may set a short-lived cookie that marks your browser as having passed.
| Who | When | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Delidded | Staff sign in to the admin dashboard | Keeps staff signed in for up to 24 hours |
| Delidded (dld_thermcam) | You answer the Clarity question | Remembers your answer for six months |
| Microsoft Clarity | While you read, where allowed | Heatmaps and recorded visits; Microsoft may also use them for advertising |
| CJ Affiliate and the merchant | After you click a CJ link | Credits the referral so the merchant can pay a commission |
| eBay | After you click a "Find it on eBay" link | Credits the referral through the eBay Partner Network |
| CJ Affiliate | When a CJ banner image loads | Logs the image request and may track the referral |
| Cloudflare | Only when its security features need it | Tells real browsers apart from automated traffic |
How these companies use the data is set out in their own policies, which our privacy policy links to.
Blocking or clearing cookies
You can block third-party cookies or clear stored cookies in any modern browser. Menu names shift a little between versions, but these paths are a good starting point:
- Chrome: open Settings, then Privacy and security. Third-party cookies lets you block them, and Delete browsing data clears what is stored.
- Firefox: open Settings, then Privacy & Security. Enhanced Tracking Protection set to Strict blocks cross-site cookies, and Cookies and Site Data has a Clear Data button.
- Safari on a Mac: open Settings, then Privacy. Prevent cross-site tracking blocks third-party cookies, and Manage Website Data removes stored ones.
- Safari on iPhone or iPad: open the Settings app, find Safari, and use Prevent Cross-Site Tracking or Clear History and Website Data.
- Edge: open Settings, then Privacy, search, and services. Tracking prevention set to Strict blocks most third-party cookies, and Clear browsing data removes stored ones.
Blocking third-party cookies does not break anything on Delidded. The only effect on us is that a shop may not be able to tell that you arrived from one of our links.
Contact
Questions about cookies on this site go to bench@delidded.com, or through the contact page.