Cookie Policy

1. What Are Cookies?

Cookies are small text files that are placed on your device (computer, tablet, or mobile phone) when you visit a website. They are widely used to make websites work more efficiently and to provide information to website owners.

Cookies help us provide you with a better experience by enabling us to recognise you when you return, remember your preferences, and understand how you use our platform.

2. How We Use Cookies

Dream Journal uses cookies for the following purposes:

2.1 Essential Cookies

These cookies are necessary for the website to function properly. They enable core functionality such as:

• Authentication: Keeping you logged in during your session
• Security: Protecting against cross-site request forgery and other security threats
• Session Management: Maintaining your session state as you navigate the platform

These cookies cannot be disabled as they are essential for the service to work.

2.2 Functional Cookies

These cookies enable enhanced functionality and personalisation:

• Preferences: Remembering your display preferences (theme, layout settings)
• Language: Storing your preferred language settings
• Recent Activity: Keeping track of recently viewed dream entries

2.3 Analytics Cookies

We use analytics cookies to understand how visitors interact with our platform:

• Google Analytics: Collects anonymised information about page visits, time on site, and user journeys
• Usage Patterns: Helps us understand which features are most used and where we can improve

Analytics data is aggregated and anonymised, meaning we cannot identify individual users from this data.

2.4 Marketing Cookies

Currently, Dream Journal does not use marketing or advertising cookies. If this changes in the future, we will update this policy and seek your consent.

3. Cookies We Use

Here is a detailed list of the cookies we use:

4. Third-Party Cookies

Some cookies are placed by third-party services that appear on our pages:

• Google Analytics: Provides website analytics. Google Privacy Policy
• Stripe: Processes payments securely. Stripe Privacy Policy

We do not control these third-party cookies. Please refer to the respective privacy policies for more information.

5. Managing Cookies

You have control over cookies on your device. Here's how you can manage them:

5.1 Browser Settings

Most browsers allow you to:

• View what cookies are stored on your device
• Delete cookies individually or all at once
• Block cookies from specific or all websites
• Set preferences for how cookies are handled

5.2 Browser-Specific Instructions

• Chrome: Settings > Privacy and Security > Cookies
• Firefox: Settings > Privacy & Security > Cookies
• Safari: Preferences > Privacy > Cookies
• Edge: Settings > Privacy > Cookies

5.3 Opt-Out of Analytics

To opt out of Google Analytics across all websites, you can install the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.

6. Impact of Disabling Cookies

If you choose to disable or block cookies:

• Essential cookies: Disabling these will prevent you from using Dream Journal, as you won't be able to stay logged in
• Functional cookies: Your preferences may not be remembered between sessions
• Analytics cookies: Your visits will not be included in our anonymous usage statistics

7. Local Storage and Similar Technologies

In addition to cookies, we also use:

• Local Storage: To store larger amounts of data locally, such as draft dream entries before they're saved
• Session Storage: To maintain state during a single browser session

These technologies work similarly to cookies but can store more data. They can typically be managed through the same browser settings as cookies.

8. Updates to This Policy

We may update this Cookie Policy from time to time to reflect changes in technology, legislation, or our data practices. When we make significant changes, we will notify you by updating the "Last updated" date at the top of this policy.

9. Contact Us

If you have questions about our use of cookies, please contact us:

• Email: privacy@dreamjournal.online

For more information about how we handle your personal data, please see our Privacy Policy.