Cookie Policy

🍪1. What Are Cookies?

Cookies are small text files that are placed on your computer, smartphone, or other device when you visit a website. They are widely used to make websites work more efficiently, provide a better user experience, and supply information to the owners of the site.

Cookies can be "persistent" or "session" cookies. Persistent cookies remain on your device after you close your browser and are used the next time you access the Service. Session cookies are temporary and are deleted from your device once you close your browser.

We also use other tracking technologies, such as browser local storage and session storage, which function similarly to cookies but may store larger amounts of data. These are described in Section 4 below.

📋2. Cookies We Use

We categorize the cookies used on our Service into the following types:

2.1 Strictly Necessary Cookies

These cookies are essential for the Service to function properly. Without them, you would not be able to log in, navigate securely, or use core features. Because they are strictly necessary, these cookies cannot be refused or disabled. They include:

• Authentication tokens — JWT-based session and refresh tokens that keep you securely logged in
• Security cookies — Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) protection and fraud prevention
• Cookie consent record — Stores your cookie consent preference so we do not prompt you repeatedly

2.2 Functional Cookies

Functional cookies remember choices you make and provide enhanced, personalised features. If you disable these cookies, some features may not work as intended. They include:

• Language preference — Remembers your selected interface language (English, Ukrainian, Russian, German, French, Spanish, Italian, or Polish)
• Theme preference — Stores your chosen visual theme (Fantasy, Winter, Easter, Halloween, Lunar, Summer, or Valentine)
• Display settings — Layout, grid density, and other UI customisations

2.3 Analytics Cookies

Analytics cookies help us understand how visitors interact with our Service by collecting and reporting information. This data is used to improve the Service's performance, usability, and features. We use:

• Google Analytics (tracking ID: G-5X68N2HC0R) — Collects anonymised data about page views, session duration, traffic sources, and general usage patterns
• Performance monitoring — Tracks page load times, error rates, and application responsiveness to help us identify and resolve technical issues

📝3. Cookie Details

The following table lists the specific cookies placed by our Service:

💾4. Local Storage & Similar Technologies

In addition to cookies, we use browser local storage and session storage to enhance your experience. These technologies allow us to store data directly in your browser for faster performance and offline-capable features.

4.1 Local Storage

Local storage data persists until explicitly cleared by you or the application. We use it for:

• Cached data — Book metadata, library information, and other content cached locally for faster page loads
• User preferences — Display settings, sorting preferences, and UI state that persist across browser sessions
• Feature flags — Locally stored configuration flags that control feature availability and seasonal themes
• Authentication state — Token storage for maintaining your logged-in session

4.2 Session Storage

Session storage is cleared automatically when you close your browser tab. We use it for:

• Temporary UI state — Form data, scroll positions, and navigation state during your current visit
• Real-time notification state — Temporary data supporting our WebSocket-based real-time notification system

4.3 WebSocket Connections

Our Service uses WebSocket connections to deliver real-time notifications (such as achievement unlocks, friend requests, and social activity updates). If a WebSocket connection cannot be established, the Service falls back to polling at 15-second intervals. These connections are authenticated using your existing session token and do not place additional cookies on your device.

🌐5. Third-Party Cookies & Services

Certain third-party services integrated into our platform may place their own cookies on your device. We do not control these cookies. The third parties and their purposes are:

We encourage you to review the privacy and cookie policies of these third-party providers, as their practices are not covered by this Cookie Policy.

📊6. Analytics

We use Google Analytics (property ID: G-5X68N2HC0R) to collect aggregated, anonymised data about how our Service is used. This helps us:

• Understand which features are most popular and which need improvement
• Identify technical issues and performance bottlenecks
• Measure the effectiveness of design changes and new features
• Understand general traffic patterns and user demographics (region, device type)

Google Analytics uses cookies (_ga, _ga_*, _gid) to distinguish unique users and sessions. The data collected includes page URLs, time on page, referral source, browser type, screen resolution, and general geographic location (city-level). We do not use Google Analytics to collect personally identifiable information.

Opt-out: You can opt out of Google Analytics tracking by installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on, or by adjusting your cookie settings as described in Section 7.

⚙️7. Managing Your Preferences

7.1 Browser Cookie Settings

Most web browsers allow you to manage cookies through their settings. You can typically:

• View and delete existing cookies stored on your device
• Block all cookies or only third-party cookies
• Configure cookie preferences on a per-site basis
• Receive a notification when a cookie is being set

For instructions on managing cookies in popular browsers, consult your browser's help documentation:

• Google Chrome — Settings > Privacy and Security > Cookies
• Mozilla Firefox — Settings > Privacy & Security > Cookies
• Apple Safari — Preferences > Privacy
• Microsoft Edge — Settings > Cookies and Site Permissions

7.2 Clearing Local Storage

To clear local storage data set by our Service, you can use your browser's developer tools (typically accessible via F12) or clear all site data through your browser's settings. Please note that clearing local storage will log you out and reset your cached preferences.

7.3 Impact of Disabling Cookies

Disabling or blocking cookies may significantly affect your ability to use our Service. Specifically:

• Essential cookies — Blocking these will prevent you from logging in and accessing authenticated features entirely
• Functional cookies — Your language and theme preferences will not persist between sessions, requiring you to reconfigure them each time
• Analytics cookies — Blocking these will not affect your use of the Service, but will limit our ability to improve it based on usage data

🛡️8. Do Not Track Signals

Some browsers offer a "Do Not Track" (DNT) feature that signals to websites that you do not wish to be tracked. There is currently no universally accepted standard for how companies should respond to DNT signals. At this time, our Service does not respond to DNT signals. However, you can manage your tracking preferences through the methods described in Section 7 above. We will update this policy if a uniform DNT standard is adopted.

🔄9. Updates to This Policy

We may update this Cookie Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our use of cookies, changes in technology, legal requirements, or for other operational reasons. When we make material changes, we will:

• Update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page
• Post a notice on our Service if the changes are significant
• Where required by law, seek your renewed consent for cookies

We encourage you to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how we use cookies.