Last updated: 13 September 2026
This page explains what cookies are, which ones hooklinestitcher.com uses and why, and how to control them. It sits alongside our Privacy Policy, which covers the wider question of what data we collect and what we do with it.
A cookie is a small text file that a website asks your browser to store. The next time you visit, the site can read it back.
Cookies are not programs and cannot read files on your computer. Mostly they do dull, useful jobs — remembering that you are logged in, or that you already dismissed a notice. Some are used to build a picture of your browsing across sites, and those are the ones worth paying attention to.
Similar technologies — local storage, pixels, and browser caching — work differently but serve related purposes. Where this page says “cookies”, take it to include those.
The categories we use
Strictly necessary. These make the site work and cannot be switched off. They handle security, caching so pages load quickly, and keeping you signed in if you have an account here. Without them the site breaks.
Functional. These remember small preferences — for example, saving your name and email if you leave a comment, so you do not retype them next time.
Analytics. These help us understand which articles people find useful and where visitors come from. We look at aggregate patterns, not individuals.
Advertising. We do not currently serve advertising on this site, and no advertising cookies are set. We intend to display ads in future. When that happens, this page will be updated before the ads go live, and advertising cookies will be described here specifically.
The services that set them
Rather than list cookie names and durations that go stale the moment a plugin updates, here is what is actually running and what each one is for:
- WordPress — the software this site runs on. Sets cookies for logged-in users and for comment authors who ask to be remembered. If you never log in or comment, most of these never appear.
- LiteSpeed Cache — serves pages quickly. Uses cookies to know whether to show you a cached page or a fresh one.
- Wordfence Security — protects the site from attacks and blocks malicious traffic. Sets cookies to distinguish legitimate visitors from automated attacks.
- Burst Statistics — our analytics, chosen specifically because it is privacy-friendly and keeps data on our own server rather than sending it to a third party. Depending on its configuration it may run without cookies at all.
- Google Site Kit — connects the site to Google Search Console so we can see which search terms bring people here. Where Google Analytics is connected through it, Google sets its own cookies under its own policies.
- Embedded content — articles may include a Pinterest pin, a video or similar. Embedded content behaves as though you had visited that site directly, and those services set their own cookies. We have no control over them.
How to control cookies
You are in charge of this, and you do not need our permission.
Every major browser lets you block cookies, delete existing ones, or clear them automatically when you close it. The settings are usually under Privacy or Site Settings, and browser help pages explain the exact steps for your version.
Most browsers also offer a private or incognito window, which discards cookies when you close it — the simplest option if you only want to read an article without leaving anything behind.
What happens if you block them: the site still works and every pattern remains readable. You may lose small conveniences — pages could load slightly slower, and comment details will not be remembered. Nothing important breaks.
If you want to opt out of analytics across the web generally, browser “Do Not Track” and “Global Privacy Control” settings, and privacy-focused browser extensions, apply here as they do anywhere else.
Third-party cookies and our approach
We have deliberately kept third-party tracking on this site to a minimum. Our analytics are configured to avoid following you across other websites, and we do not build advertising profiles of individual readers or sell data to anyone.
The cookies we cannot fully control are those set by embedded content and by Google’s own services. Those are governed by the policies of the companies that set them, not by us.
Changes to this policy
If we add a service that sets new cookies — advertising being the likely one — we will update this page and change the date at the top before it goes live.
Questions
Ask us anything about this. Write to contact@hooklinestitcher.com or use the contact page. See also our Privacy Policy, Disclaimer and Terms & Conditions.