This page lists the cookies actually used on this website. A cookie is a small file a site stores in your browser so it can remember something between requests. We have kept the list short, and we have checked it against what the site really does rather than describing a typical publisher setup.
You can read every article on HRITU without accepting any cookie, and nothing here is hidden behind a cookie wall.
Cookies set only if you comment
Comments are currently closed, so none of these cookies are being set at present. When the comment form is available it carries an optional checkbox that saves your details for next time. If, and only if, you tick it, WordPress stores three cookies in your browser:
comment_author_*– the name you commented under.comment_author_email_*– the email address you gave.comment_author_url_*– the website address you gave, if any.
These exist purely so you do not have to retype those three fields. They last about a year, they are set by this site rather than by anyone else, and they are never set if you leave the checkbox unticked or never comment at all.
Cookies set only if you administer the site
WordPress sets login and preference cookies, such as wordpress_logged_in_* and wp-settings-*, when someone signs in to the administration area. Reader accounts do not exist on this site and registration is switched off, so these apply only to the site’s own staff. They are strictly necessary for the admin area to function.
Analytics cookies
This site runs Google Analytics 4 (measurement ID G-RBQLG4Z2JX), installed through the Google Site Kit plugin. It is active on public pages and sets the following in your browser:
_ga– distinguishes one browser from another so repeat visits are not counted as new people. Typically lasts two years._ga_<container>– used by Google Analytics 4 to maintain session state. Typically lasts two years.
These tell us how many people read an article, which pages they came from, and roughly where in the world they are. We use that to decide what to publish more of. We do not use analytics to identify individual readers, and Google Advertising features and audience personalisation are not enabled on this property. Analytics is also configured not to record visits by signed-in administrators.
Security and delivery
The site is served through Cloudflare, which filters malicious traffic before it reaches us. In normal browsing no Cloudflare cookie is placed. If its protection needs to verify that a request is not automated, Cloudflare may set a short-lived security cookie such as __cf_bm or cf_clearance for that purpose. These are security measures rather than tracking, and they carry no advertising or profiling function.
The site also uses LiteSpeed Cache to serve pages quickly. Page caching for ordinary visitors works without identifying you and does not require a cookie to read the site.
Advertising cookies
This site runs Google AdSense (publisher ID ca-pub-1209429664297933), loaded through the Google Site Kit plugin. The AdSense script is present on every page and is able to set cookies in your browser.
Google is still reviewing the site, so advertisements may not be appearing yet. We are describing this now rather than later because the script is already running, and it is the script rather than the advertisement that sets a cookie.
These cookies are set by Google and its advertising partners, not by us. We cannot read them, and the exact names change as Google changes its systems, so rather than publish a list that will quietly go stale, here is what they are for:
- Choosing advertisements, including deciding whether to show you something related to pages you have visited before.
- Frequency capping, so you are not shown the same advertisement repeatedly.
- Measurement and fraud prevention, so Google can tell a genuine view from an automated one.
Google maintains its own current list at Types of cookies used by Google, and explains what it collects from sites like this one at How Google uses information from sites that use its services.
Turning personalised advertising off
- Manage what Google shows you, on any site, at My Ad Center. You can switch personalisation off entirely there; you will still see advertisements, but they will not be based on your activity.
- Block third-party cookies for this site in your browser. Advertisements may still appear but personalisation and measurement are limited.
- The site remains fully readable with every advertising cookie blocked.
Embedded content
Articles on this site do not currently embed video players, social media posts, maps, comment systems or other third-party frames, so no such service is setting cookies through our pages. Links to Wikipedia, news sources and other sites in our articles, and the share buttons on each article, are plain links. Nothing is sent to those companies unless you click one and go there yourself.
Controlling cookies
Every major browser lets you view the cookies a site has stored, delete them, and block them either generally or site by site. The controls are usually under Privacy or Site settings in the browser menu.
- Blocking cookies from this site will not stop you reading anything on it.
- Blocking them will mean the comment form no longer remembers your details.
- Google provides a browser add-on to opt out of Google Analytics across every site that uses it.
- Most browsers also offer a private or incognito window, which discards cookies when you close it.
Consent
We would rather state this plainly than claim a mechanism the site does not have. HRITU does not currently display a cookie consent banner. The non-essential cookies in use are the Google Analytics cookies and the Google AdSense cookies described above.
That matters most if you are reading from a region where consent is required before such cookies are set, such as the UK or the EU. We are based in India and the site is written for a general audience, but we are not going to pretend the question does not arise. Until a consent banner is in place, you can control these cookies yourself:
- Opt out of Google Analytics with the browser add-on.
- Turn off advertising personalisation at My Ad Center.
- Block cookies for this site in your browser. Everything here remains readable.
If you have a question about any of this, write to info@hritu.com.
Questions
Write to info@hritu.com, or see the Privacy Policy for the fuller picture of what this site collects.