What Are Cookies?

Cookies are small text files that get stored on your device when you visit websites. They're pretty standard across the internet—nothing mysterious or complicated. Think of them as digital bookmarks that help websites remember who you are and what you prefer.

We use them at serenithalor to make your learning experience smoother. When you come back to our site, cookies help us recognize you so you don't have to log in every single time or reset your preferences. They also help us understand how people use our platform, which guides us in making improvements.

Most browsers accept cookies automatically, but you're always in control. You can adjust your settings to decline them if you prefer, though some features might not work as smoothly.

Types of Tracking We Use

Different cookies serve different purposes. Here's what we actually use on serenithalor.com and why each type matters.

How Cookies Improve Your Experience

Let me give you some real examples of how this actually works in practice.

When Larissa Whitbourne logs into her account on Tuesday morning, she doesn't have to re-enter her dashboard preferences. The site remembers she likes viewing her course progress in list format rather than tiles. That's functional cookies doing their job.

Or consider how we track course completion. If you're halfway through a module on investment basics and you close your browser, cookies ensure you pick up right where you left off when you return. Without them, you'd start from scratch every time.

What We Track and Why

• Login sessions to keep you authenticated as you move between pages
• Course progress so you never lose your place in learning materials
• Navigation patterns to identify confusing site sections that need redesign
• Content engagement to understand which educational formats work best
• Technical performance data to catch and fix errors quickly
• User preferences to maintain your customized dashboard settings

Managing Your Cookie Preferences

You control which cookies you accept. Every major browser gives you options to manage this, though the exact steps vary.

Browser-Specific Instructions

Here's how to manage cookies in common browsers. The menus change occasionally, so these are current as of early 2025.

• Chrome: Click the three dots menu, select Settings, then Privacy and Security. Choose "Cookies and other site data" to adjust preferences.
• Firefox: Open the menu, select Settings, then Privacy & Security. Scroll to "Cookies and Site Data" to manage your preferences.
• Safari: Go to Preferences, click Privacy, and adjust cookie settings. Safari blocks third-party cookies by default in recent versions.
• Edge: Click the three dots, select Settings, then Cookies and Site Permissions to configure your preferences.

Keep in mind that clearing cookies logs you out of websites and resets your preferences everywhere. If you're trying to maintain privacy while keeping functionality, consider blocking only third-party cookies rather than all cookies.

Data Retention and Storage

Different cookies last for different durations depending on their purpose.

Session cookies disappear when you close your browser. These are what keep you logged in as you navigate between pages during a single visit. Once you shut down the browser, they're gone.

Persistent cookies stick around longer—anywhere from a few days to several months. These remember your login status and preferences between visits. We set reasonable expiration dates based on what makes sense for each function.

Third-Party Tracking

We limit third-party cookies significantly compared to many educational platforms. We don't integrate with multiple advertising networks or social media trackers that follow you across the internet.

The few third-party tools we do use serve specific purposes. We use an analytics service to process usage statistics, but we've configured it to anonymize IP addresses and respect Do Not Track signals. We also use a payment processor for course transactions, which sets its own cookies during checkout.

We don't sell or share cookie data with advertisers. Any third-party service we integrate must meet our privacy standards and provide genuine value to users. If we add new third-party tools in the future, we'll update this policy and notify existing users.

Updates to This Policy

We review this cookie policy annually, or whenever we make significant changes to how we use tracking technologies. If we add new cookie types or change data retention periods, we'll update the "Last Updated" date at the top of this page.

For substantial changes that affect your privacy, we'll send an email notification to active users and display a notice on the site. You'll always have the option to adjust your cookie preferences in response to any changes.

Previous versions of this policy are archived and available upon request if you want to review what's changed over time.