Cookies and on-device storage
Last updated: 20 July 2026
Get Unspun is built to be read without being tracked. This page explains, in plain English, exactly what the site stores on a device, why, and what choices a visitor has. It is written to be honest first: where the answer is “nothing”, it says so.
The short version
- Get Unspun runs one privacy-first analytics tool, Google Analytics, on by default, and any visitor can switch it off here or from the footer.
- With analytics on, a few small first-party analytics cookies are set (such as
_ga); switching analytics off stops them. No other cookies are set. - The rest is a few small settings kept in the browser’s own local storage — reading progress, the light or dark theme, and the chosen reading depth. These stay on the device, are never sent anywhere, and identify nobody.
- No advertising and no ad trackers run on the site, ever.
What gets stored on a device now
Get Unspun keeps three small settings in the browser using a feature called localStorage. This is browser storage, not a cookie: it is never attached to a network request, so it never travels to Get Unspun or to anyone else. It simply lets the site remember a reader’s own choices between pages and visits.
| What is stored | Why it is stored | Where it lives |
|---|---|---|
| Reading progress | So “Continue” can resume the last topic | The visitor’s browser only |
| Theme (light or dark) | So the chosen appearance holds across pages | The visitor’s browser only |
| Reading depth (Quick / Basics / Deep) | So the chosen depth holds across pages | The visitor’s browser only |
None of these carries an identifier. None is a tracking record. Each exists only to deliver a setting the reader asked for.
Under the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR, regulation 6), storage that is strictly necessary to provide a service the visitor has explicitly requested — and settings that simply remember a visitor’s own appearance or preferences — do not require consent. Remembering a chosen theme, reading depth and place in a topic falls squarely inside those exceptions. That is why there is no cookie banner.
Does Get Unspun use cookies?
Only for analytics, which is on by default. There is no advertising network, no social embed, no comment system and no login — the usual reasons a site sets cookies. Google Analytics sets a few small first-party cookies (see below); switch analytics off, here or from the footer, and the site becomes entirely cookie-free.
Analytics (on by default, easy to switch off)
Get Unspun uses one privacy-first tool to measure which explainers are useful: Google Analytics 4, run by Google. It follows fixed rules:
- On by default, off in one click. Analytics runs unless a visitor switches it off — from the notice on the first visit, or the “Analytics settings” link in the footer at any time. Switching it off stops measurement from the next page on.
- Never anything personal. No name, email or account is ever collected.
- Delivered first-party through Cloudflare. The tag and its measurements travel only to getunspun.co.uk, which forwards them to Google. The browser never contacts Google’s own domains directly.
- What it measures. Ordinary usage only: which pages are viewed, roughly where a visit comes from (country or region, from a shortened IP address that is not stored), the type of device and browser, and how a visitor arrived.
- The cookies it sets. A few small first-party cookies (such as
_ga) to tell a returning visit from a new one. Switching analytics off stops them. - Who processes it, and for how long. Google processes this data as Get Unspun’s analytics provider. Event data is kept for 14 months and then deleted automatically.
- Withdraw whenever. An “Analytics settings” control in the footer reopens the choice, so analytics can be switched off at any time. Switching it off stops measurement from the next page on.
- One category only. Analytics or nothing — there is no advertising or marketing category, because Get Unspun runs no ads and sells no data, ever.
Managing what is stored
Because everything is kept in the browser, a visitor stays in control:
- Clear it any time through the browser’s settings — clearing site data or history removes the stored settings, and the site simply falls back to its defaults on the next visit.
- Block it by using the browser’s private or incognito mode, or its site-storage controls. The site still works; it just will not remember choices.
- Change the analytics choice through the “Analytics settings” link in the footer, which reopens the accept-or-refuse notice at any time. Turning analytics off stops any further measurement straight away.
Privacy in one line
No accounts, no forms, no ads, and no personal data collected by Get Unspun. The only optional extra is analytics, which stays off until a visitor opts in; everything else is a handful of settings held in the visitor’s own browser, which never leave the device. The privacy statement gives the fuller picture.
Changes to this page
This page will be updated if the site’s storage or analytics position changes, and the “last updated” date above will change with it. Any move to add analytics will be reflected here before it goes live.