Cookies & storage / Updated 17 October 2026
This policy covers brendantack.com, the portfolio, Brendan OS and the career game. Cookies are small pieces of information stored by a browser; local storage is a similar technology that can keep settings and game saves on your device.
Optional Google Analytics uses cookies only after you allow analytics. Your privacy choice, game saves and requested settings use the local storage described below. Vercel Web Analytics is also optional and uses a temporary request-derived identifier rather than tracking cookies. A service’s use of no cookies does not mean it processes no information.
Saved on your device
These settings support your privacy choice and features you choose to use. They are not used to track you across websites. The experience picker does not save a preferred experience for later visits; if you allow analytics, choosing an experience is recorded as a navigation event. Desktop windows and the displayed Echo conversation remain in tab memory.
Remembers whether you allow or reject Google Analytics and Vercel Analytics, with the date of your choice.
Storage: first-party browser local storage.
Duration: The choice expires after 180 days. The stored record remains until replaced or you clear site data.
Legacy Vercel-only choice. An earlier rejection is respected until its original expiry; an earlier approval does not enable the new analytics setup.
Storage: first-party browser local storage.
Duration: The original choice expires after 180 days. The stored record remains until you clear site data.
Remembers your choice to enable or pause the desktop's portfolio skill pop-ups. These are not advertising-network adverts.
Storage: first-party browser local storage.
Duration: Until changed or you clear site data.
Saves career-game progress so you can continue playing.
Storage: first-party browser local storage.
Duration: Until reset in the game or you clear site data.
Remembers skills earned in the career game.
Storage: first-party browser local storage.
Duration: Until you clear site data or the game resets them.
Remembers game music and sound-effect preferences, including a legacy sound setting.
Storage: first-party browser local storage.
Duration: Until changed or you clear site data.
Optional analytics
Google Analytics 4 and Vercel Analytics load only after you choose “Allow analytics” and your browser successfully saves that choice. Choose “Reject analytics” to browse without them, or use “Privacy settings” on any website page to change your choice. The portfolio, game, contact options and Echo remain available when analytics is off.
Earlier approval covered Vercel only and requires a new decision before either tracker loads. Earlier rejection remains respected until its original expiry. Your choice lasts 180 days without being extended by visits. Blocking preference storage keeps analytics off.
Expiry or withdrawal disables collection and reloads a page where analytics was active to stop its loaded trackers. The site also attempts to delete Google Analytics cookies it can access; browser restrictions may prevent deletion. Changing your choice does not erase information already received by the providers.
Optional measurement
Google Analytics and Vercel provide traffic reports using page paths, referring sites, visit times, approximate location and device/browser information. Google also measures session and engagement duration, choices between the portfolio and Brendan OS, recognised content and product links, contact choices, CV links, Echo connection status and deliberate film viewing.
Contact events record opening the dialog, choosing email, phone or booking, or successfully copying the public email address. CV events record opening a recognised CV link. They show interest, without confirming that a message was sent, a call connected, a booking was completed or a file was saved or read. Echo events record connected text or voice sessions and their disconnection, without conversation contents or booking-tool results.
Viewing measurements cover the CV introduction, Clubable and BrickStack films: starts, progress at 25%, 50% and 75%, and completion. They exclude muted intro autoplay, hidden or background playback, seeking and repeated segments from watched progress. Google’s separate scroll event records reaching about 90% of a full page; it does not prove reading or track completion within a Brendan OS window.
Page addresses sent to both services omit query strings and fragments. Google uses filtered public paths and defined interaction labels; short source, medium, campaign-name and campaign-content labels can be retained separately. Names, email addresses, phone numbers, typed searches, form messages, Echo messages and voice audio are not sent as journey-event parameters. Analytics is limited to the public site and stays off on development and preview hosts.
This website and Valdris use separate Google Analytics properties and are not configured to join visitor journeys across domains. Google Signals, user-provided data collection, advertising storage and advertising personalisation are disabled. Read the full explanation of journey measurement in the privacy notice.
Analytics storage
Google Analytics uses the first-party cookies _ga and _ga_* to distinguish visits and sessions. Their lifetime is limited to the remaining consent period, up to 180 days, without refreshing that limit on each visit. These identifiers mean analytics should not be treated as anonymous.
User-level and event-level retention in Google Analytics is set to two months, with renewal on new activity switched off. This is separate from cookie lifetime, and aggregated reports can remain longer. See Google’s privacy policy and Google Analytics privacy information.
Vercel says its temporary visitor identifier is discarded after 24 hours. This does not mean all aggregated reports are deleted after 24 hours. See Vercel’s analytics privacy information.
Other services
Echo connects to ElevenLabs only when you start a conversation. Voice also requires browser microphone permission. Contact-form delivery uses Web3Forms on submission. Booking and product links open separate websites, which may use their own cookies and privacy controls. Allowing this site’s analytics is not consent to those websites’ optional cookies.
The portfolio skill pop-ups are locally displayed content, with no advertising-network tracker. Google Analytics is used only for the optional website measurement described above. There is no Meta Pixel or advertising-network integration in the website’s application code. Hosting/security services may process technical request information to deliver and protect the site.
Managing storage
Pause desktop skill pop-ups using the Ads switch or View menu; adjust game audio in the game. Your browser’s site-data settings can delete local storage for brendantack.com. This removes game saves and remembered choices. Blocking storage may prevent settings from surviving a reload; the site still works and analytics remains off by default.
A directly opened static game page does not load this website’s analytics component. It still uses its local game saves and sound settings. Return to the portfolio to manage your analytics choice.
For personal-data handling and your rights, read the privacy notice. Contact Brendan Tack at brendan_tack@yahoo.com.