Cookie Policy (EU)
What Are Cookies
Cookies are small text files that are placed on your computer or mobile device when you visit a website. They are widely used to make websites work more efficiently and to provide information to website owners.
Our Cookie Consent Approach
In accordance with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and ePrivacy Directive:
- Non-essential cookies are blocked by default until you provide consent via our cookie banner
- Only strictly necessary cookies (authentication, consent preference) are set without consent
- Analytics cookies (Google Analytics) are only loaded after you explicitly accept them
- You can refuse all non-essential cookies without losing access to any core site functionality
- You can change your cookie preferences at any time by clearing your browser cookies — this will trigger the consent banner again on your next visit
How We Use Cookies
Chess Next Move uses cookies for the following purposes:
- Essential Cookies: Required for the website to function properly, including authentication and security
- Functional Cookies: Remember your settings like dark/light mode and board preferences
- Analytics Cookies: Help us understand how visitors use our website (only with consent)
Cookies We Use
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are essential for you to use our website. They do not require consent.
- __Secure-next-auth.session-token: Maintains your login session. Expires when you sign out or after 30 days of inactivity.
- cookie_consent: Stores your cookie preference (accepted/rejected). Expires after 1 year.
Functional Cookies (localStorage)
These are stored in your browser's localStorage (not traditional cookies) and remember your preferences:
- theme: Your preferred color scheme (dark/light mode). Persists until you change it.
- boardOrientation: Your preferred board orientation (white/black at bottom). Persists until you change it.
- language: Your preferred interface language. Persists until you change it.
These are set only when you interact with the relevant settings. They are stored locally on your device and are never sent to our servers.
Analytics Cookies (Consent Required)
We use Google Analytics (GA4, measurement ID: G-8NB7QN8XB6) to understand how visitors interact with our website. The GA4 script is not loaded at all until you accept analytics cookies via our consent banner. When accepted, the following cookies may be set:
- _ga: Distinguishes unique users. Expires after 2 years.
- _ga_*: Maintains session state. Expires after 2 years.
Google Analytics collects anonymized data including pages visited, time on site, and general location. We have IP anonymization enabled. For more details, see Google's Privacy Policy.
Third-Party Cookies
Some cookies may be placed by third-party services that appear on our pages:
- Google Analytics (GA4): For website traffic analysis — only loaded after you accept cookies via our consent banner. See above for cookie details.
- Stripe: For secure payment processing, fraud prevention, and security. Stripe may set cookies such as __stripe_mid and __stripe_sid when you visit our checkout or payment pages. These are necessary for payment security and are exempt from consent requirements. See Stripe's Privacy Policy.
- Cloudflare: Our CDN provider may set performance cookies such as __cf_bm for bot detection and DDoS protection. These are strictly necessary for site security. See Cloudflare's Privacy Policy.
Your Cookie Choices
Under the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), you have the right to:
- Accept or decline non-essential cookies when first visiting our site
- Change your cookie preferences at any time by clearing your browser cookies
- Delete cookies that have already been set through your browser settings
- Use our site with only essential cookies — all core features work without analytics cookies
How to manage cookies in your browser: Most browsers allow you to control cookies through their settings (usually found under Privacy or Security). You can set your browser to refuse cookies, delete specific cookies, or clear all cookies. Note that blocking essential cookies may affect site functionality.
Contact Us
If you have any questions about our use of cookies, please contact us at [email protected] or visit our Contact page.
Last updated: April 2026