Cookie Policy
Last updated: September 5, 2026
This page lists every cookie this site may store in your browser, with its name, owner and duration. At the end I explain how to verify it yourself.
1. What a cookie is
A cookie is a small text file that a website asks your browser to store, and which the browser sends back on later visits. It lets a site remember something between pages: that you dismissed a notice, or an anonymous identifier used to measure visits.
A cookie cannot read files on your device, run programs, or access information you haven't provided yourself.
Alongside cookies there are other browser storage mechanisms, such as localStorage or sessionStorage, that the law treats the same way: Article 5 of Portuguese Law 41/2004 refers to storing and accessing information on the user's terminal equipment rather than to cookies specifically. This site uses none of them, but they would be listed here if it did.
2. How consent is requested
The first time you visit, you'll see a notice with two buttons of equal visual weight: Reject and Accept. There's no hidden option, no pre-ticked box, and no prominent button paired with a muted one.
Until you choose, Google's Consent Mode state is denied: no analytics cookie is written and Google Analytics stores no identifier.
Your choice is stored in a first-party cookie called cookie_consent. It's a technical cookie: it exists precisely so you're not asked again, and therefore requires no consent.
3. Cookies this site uses
3.1. Technical cookies
Needed to remember a decision you made. No consent required under Article 5(2) of Law 41/2004.
| Name | Owner | Purpose | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
cookie_consent | First-party | Stores whether you accepted or rejected analytics cookies | 1 year |
3.2. Analytics cookies
Only written if you click Accept. They tell me which pages get read and how people move through the site.
| Name | Owner | Purpose | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
_ga | Google Analytics 4 | Distinguishes visitors using a random identifier | 2 years |
_ga_2NJX8LHP27 | Google Analytics 4 | Keeps session state for this property | 2 years |
3.3. Cookieless analytics
This site also uses Cloudflare Web Analytics, which measures visits in aggregate without cookies and without persistent identifiers. It doesn't collect data that could identify you, so it requires no consent.
3.4. What this site doesn't use
- Advertising or retargeting cookies
- Social media cookies
- Heatmaps or session recording
- Fingerprinting or first-party persistent identifiers
4. Third-party policies
- Google Privacy Policy — covers Google Analytics
- Cloudflare Privacy Policy — covers hosting and cookieless analytics
5. How to change your mind
On this site: there's a link called Cookies in the footer that reopens the notice so you can change your decision. Rejecting disables analytics cookies.
In your browser: you can block or delete cookies from your browser settings. Note that blocking all cookies may affect how this and other sites work.
6. How to verify this
Don't take my word for it:
- Open an incognito window and visit the site
- Press F12 or right-click, Inspect
- Go to the Application tab
- Under Storage, expand Cookies and select the domain
- Reject cookies and look. Then accept and compare
If anything doesn't match this page, email me at hello@alvaroortegaescot.com and I'll fix it.