Short version.
This site sets a couple of strictly-necessary cookies from Cloudflare so visitors don’t get treated like bots. If you say yes, it also loads Google Analytics (anonymised visit counts) and Instagram embeds (which set their own Meta cookies). No advertising cookies, no tracking pixels. You can change your mind any time from the footer.
What’s a cookie
A cookie is a small text file your browser saves when you visit a site, so the site can remember things between page loads or visits. Some are strictly necessary for the site to work safely. Others are optional, for things like analytics or advertising.
What this site sets
Always on (strictly necessary)
These run regardless of the banner because the site can’t function safely without them.
| Cookie | Source | What it’s for | Expiry |
|---|---|---|---|
cf_clearance |
Cloudflare | Bot detection. Lets Cloudflare confirm you’re a real visitor and not a scraping script. | 30 days |
__cf_bm |
Cloudflare | Bot management. Resets per visit. | 30 minutes |
cmplz_* |
This site’s cookie banner | Remembers your cookie choice so the banner doesn’t reappear on every page. | 365 days |
Optional — analytics (only if you accept)
| Cookie | Source | What it’s for | Expiry |
|---|---|---|---|
_ga |
Google Analytics | Distinguishes one visitor from another, anonymously. | 2 years |
_ga_* |
Google Analytics | Stores the current session ID for the GA4 property. | 2 years |
These appear only after you accept analytics in the cookie banner. Reject and they never get set.
Optional — embeds (only if you accept)
The homepage and gallery embed recent Instagram posts from @kol.cambridge. If you accept the “Embeds” category, Instagram loads those posts and sets its own cookies. Reject and the embeds don’t load (you’ll see a placeholder instead).
| Cookie | Source | What it’s for | Expiry |
|---|---|---|---|
ig_did |
Instagram (Meta) | Anonymous device identifier. | 10 years |
ig_nrcb |
Instagram (Meta) | Tracks whether the visitor is in a region that requires cookie consent. | 1 year |
datr |
Meta | Browser fingerprint for security and abuse prevention. | 2 years |
sb |
Meta | Browser identifier used by Meta for security. | 1 year |
What this site does NOT set
No advertising cookies. No remarketing pixels. No conversion tracking. The Instagram embeds above set Meta cookies, but there’s no Meta Pixel or Facebook Pixel firing on this site — no LinkedIn Insight Tag, no Hotjar, no TikTok pixel either.
Changing your mind
You can change or withdraw your cookie choice any time by clicking the “Cookie settings” link in the footer. That re-opens the banner with your current settings, so you can flip analytics on or off.
You can also clear cookies in your browser’s privacy settings. The controls live in slightly different places in Chrome, Firefox, Safari and Edge, but they’re all in Settings under “Privacy”.
Third-party cookies on linked sites
When you click through to Libsyn (to stream an episode) or Patreon (to support the show), those sites set their own cookies under their own privacy policies. They’re listed in the privacy policy.
Last updated: 25 May 2026.