What Cookies Are
Cookies are small text files stored by your browser. "Similar technologies" in this Policy include localStorage, sessionStorage, and HTTP-only authentication tokens stored via cookies. Some are required for the Service to function; others (analytics) are optional.
How We Use Them
We use cookies for three purposes:
- Strictly necessary: authentication, session continuity, security (CSRF tokens), preference persistence (theme, locale). The Service does not function without these.
- Analytics (opt-in / opt-out): aggregate, IP-anonymized usage measurement (Google Analytics 4) to improve the site and product. Enabled only with consent in EEA/UK/Switzerland; opt-out elsewhere.
- None for advertising. Verdict does not run advertising cookies and does not participate in cross-context behavioral advertising.
Cookies We Set
| Name | Category | Purpose | Retention |
|---|---|---|---|
vs_session | Strictly necessary | Session continuity and CSRF protection | Session |
vs_theme | Strictly necessary | Persists the user's light/dark theme preference | 1 year |
vs_locale | Strictly necessary | Persists language preference | 1 year |
vs_consent | Strictly necessary | Records the user's consent state for analytics, where consent is required | 12 months |
_ga | Analytics (Google Analytics 4) | Distinguishes unique users (IP anonymized server-side) | 13 months |
_ga_* | Analytics (Google Analytics 4) | Persists session state for GA4 | 13 months |
The exact set of cookies in effect may vary slightly with product changes. We update this table at least quarterly. For the live set, you can inspect Application → Cookies in your browser's developer tools while visiting verdict.systems.
Third-Party Cookies
The only third party that may set cookies on our site is Google Analytics 4, and only after consent (where required) or absent an opt-out. We have configured GA4 with IP anonymization and disabled data-sharing options that are not necessary for analytics.
We do not embed advertising trackers, social-network embed pixels, session-recording tools, or third-party fingerprinting libraries. We do not run a Customer Data Platform that joins website data to identifiable profiles.
Global Privacy Control
How to Manage or Disable Cookies
You can manage cookies through your browser settings. Steps for major browsers:
- Chrome: Settings → Privacy and security → Cookies and other site data.
- Safari: Settings → Privacy → Manage Website Data.
- Firefox: Settings → Privacy & Security → Cookies and Site Data.
- Edge: Settings → Cookies and site permissions.
Blocking strictly-necessary cookies will break authentication and preference persistence. Blocking analytics cookies has no effect on Service functionality.
Do Not Track
We do not respond to the legacy Do Not Track (DNT) header. DNT was deprecated by the major browsers and has been replaced by the more reliable Global Privacy Control signal (§ 5).
Changes
We will update this Policy when our cookie usage changes. For material changes, we give 14 days' advance notice in line with the Privacy Policy. The current version is always dated and posted here.
Contact
Questions about cookies: privacy@verdict.systems.
Email privacy@verdict.systems. For all other legal matters: legal@verdict.systems.
Postal: Verdict Systems Inc. · Attn: Legal · Houston, Texas, USA