This page explains what cookies and similar storage technologies are used on Starliner.net, why, and how you can manage them. It works together with the Privacy Policy.
What is a cookie
A cookie is a small text file that a website asks your browser to store. On subsequent visits the browser sends the file back, which allows the site (or a third-party service embedded in it) to recognise your browser and maintain some state between page loads. "Similar technologies" include localStorage, sessionStorage, and tracking pixels, all of which serve related purposes and are covered by this policy.
Categories of cookies used
Starliner.net uses three broad categories:
1. Strictly necessary
These are required for the site to render and to resist abuse. Examples include cookies that your hosting provider or content-delivery network may set to balance traffic and block malicious requests. These cannot be disabled without breaking the site. They do not track reading behaviour.
2. Analytics (non-essential)
We use Google Analytics 4 to measure aggregate traffic patterns — which pages are visited, from which countries, on which devices. These cookies are set by Google, not by us, and their names begin with _ga, _gid, or similar. Disabling them has no impact on the site's usability.
3. Advertising (non-essential)
The site shows advertising through Google AdSense and related Google advertising products. Google, and any partners it uses to serve ads, may set cookies in order to:
- Select which ads to show
- Measure ad performance and prevent the same ad from being shown repeatedly
- Enable personalised advertising where you have allowed it
- Help prevent click fraud and abuse
These cookies are set under Google-owned domains (including doubleclick.net, google.com, and googlesyndication.com) and are governed by Google's own policies. Starliner.net does not have direct access to the contents of these cookies.
Specific third-party services
- Google Analytics — statistical measurement. Privacy policy. Opt-out add-on.
- Google AdSense and related ad products — ad selection, delivery, measurement, and — where permitted — personalisation. How Google uses advertising cookies. Google Ad Settings.
- Google Fonts — serves typography. Google Fonts does not set cookies in most modern browsers, but the request does expose your IP address to Google for the duration of the font load.
How to manage cookies
In your browser
Every modern browser lets you view, block, or delete cookies. Instructions are available from the browser vendors:
Private-browsing or incognito modes typically discard cookies at the end of the session. Many browsers also offer "strict" tracking-protection settings that block most third-party advertising and analytics cookies by default.
Ad personalisation controls
You can opt out of personalised advertising from Google and most major ad networks using these industry controls:
- Google Ad Settings — disable personalised ads across Google's services.
- Your Online Choices (EU) — opt out across many European ad networks.
- Digital Advertising Alliance (US) — opt out across many US ad networks.
- Network Advertising Initiative — additional opt-outs.
These opt-outs use cookies themselves, so clearing your browser's cookies or switching browsers may require re-doing them.
Do Not Track
Many browsers offer a "Do Not Track" signal. Because there is no consistent industry agreement on what DNT should mean, Starliner.net treats DNT as informational. For a reliable opt-out from analytics and personalised advertising, use the controls listed above.
Consent where required
If you are located in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, or another jurisdiction where prior consent is required for non-essential cookies, your first visit to the site may include a consent prompt. You can update your choices at any time by clearing the cookies this site has set and reloading, which causes the prompt to re-appear.
Cookie list summary
An exhaustive, up-to-the-minute cookie list is difficult to provide because the set of advertising cookies varies by ad fill. The most common cookie names you are likely to see while reading Starliner.net are listed below.
_ga,_ga_*,_gid,_gat— Google Analytics. Duration: up to two years. Purpose: distinguish visitors, throttle requests, associate events with sessions.IDE,DSID,NID— Google advertising. Duration: variable, typically months to just over a year. Purpose: ad selection, measurement, personalisation.__Secure-*,__Host-*,SID,HSID,SSID,APISID,SAPISID— Google session and security. Duration: variable. Purpose: authenticate users to Google services and prevent abuse.
Changes to this policy
We may update this cookie policy as services are added or removed. Material changes will be reflected in an updated "last reviewed" date at the bottom of the page.
Contact
Questions about cookies on Starliner.net can be sent to contact@starliner.net.
Last reviewed on 2026-04-24.