Cookie Policy

Cookies are small text-based values that websites can ask a browser to store and return with later requests. They can be used for purposes such as keeping a user signed in, remembering temporary state, protecting website requests, storing preferences or measuring how a service is used.

Some cookies are temporary and expire quickly. Others can remain on a device for a longer period unless they expire or are removed by the user.

The vaartaa_reader cookie contains a random identifier rather than your name or email address. For anonymous readers, The Academica stores a one-way hash derived from that identifier together with the articles counted toward the applicable calendar-month allowance. The reader meter does not use device fingerprinting or IP address matching to recreate the identifier if the cookie is removed.

These durations describe the maximum browser lifetime currently configured for the relevant cookie. A cookie may be removed or made unusable earlier, for example when you remove it, sign out, when authentication state expires, or when the underlying session is revoked.

The cookies listed above support authentication and security functions. Depending on the stage of The Academica's account rollout, some of them may only be created when reader or authorised user sign-in functionality is available and actually used.

In production, authentication cookies are transmitted using secure cookie settings. Session and renewal credentials are configured as HttpOnly so they are not ordinarily available to browser-side JavaScript. Authentication cookies use SameSite=Lax protections.

The CSRF cookie is intentionally accessible to browser-side code because the application uses it to attach the corresponding anti-forgery token to protected requests.

Strictly necessary cookies support functions required for a service you request or for the operation, security and integrity of the website. These include the anonymous article-reading allowance, authentication, session management and protection against malicious requests.

Because these cookies are necessary for those functions to operate, disabling them may prevent sign-in, authenticated comments or other protected functionality from working correctly.

The Academica uses Google Analytics 4, provided by Google, to understand how readers use the publication, including information about page visits, navigation, engagement and website performance.

Google Analytics is treated as optional on The Academica. Its tag is not loaded unless you choose Accept analytics in our privacy choices. If you choose Essential only, The Academica does not load the Google Analytics tag.

When enabled, Google Analytics may use cookies or similar technologies and process information about your browser, device and interaction with the website. Google processes information collected through Google Analytics in accordance with its own service and privacy terms.

The Academica may display advertising, but displaying an advertisement does not necessarily require behavioural tracking or advertising cookies.

We do not currently describe behavioural advertising, cross-site targeting, advertising-profile cookies or third-party advertising trackers as active merely because advertising placements exist on the website.

If advertising technologies that use non-essential cookies or process reader information for targeting are introduced, the relevant disclosures and consent controls will be added before or alongside their use where required.

Preference cookies can remember choices such as display settings, language, content preferences or other personalised features.

Where The Academica introduces optional personalisation that relies on cookies or similar storage, this Policy will be updated to explain the relevant technology and controls.

Some services may eventually rely on third parties such as identity providers, payment providers, analytics services, advertising platforms or embedded-content providers. Those organisations may use their own technologies when you interact directly with their services.

Where a third-party technology is integrated into The Academica in a way that places or reads cookies through our service, we will update this Policy as appropriate.

A link from an article to an external website does not itself mean that the external website's cookies are placed by The Academica.

Most browsers allow you to view, remove or block cookies through their privacy or site-data settings. You can also configure some browsers to delete cookies when the browser is closed.

Blocking all cookies can affect the operation of website features. In particular, authentication, secure sessions and actions requiring CSRF protection may not work correctly if strictly necessary cookies are blocked.

The Academica presents a privacy choice before enabling Google Analytics. You can choose Essential only orAccept analytics. Choosing Essential only does not prevent strictly necessary security and authentication technologies from operating where required.

The website stores your analytics preference in browser local storage so that the choice can be respected on later visits from that browser. This preference is separate from Google Analytics and does not itself enable analytics.

If we later introduce other non-essential technologies for advertising, personalisation or similar purposes, we will update the relevant disclosures and controls as appropriate before or alongside their use.

We may update this Policy when the cookies we use, our services or applicable legal requirements change. The date at the top of this page shows when the Policy was most recently updated.

Material changes involving new non-essential tracking technologies may also be reflected through a consent or preference interface where required.

Questions about our use of cookies or other privacy practices can be sent to:

Email: legal@theacademica.com

For broader information about how The Academica handles personal information, please see our Privacy Policy.