Cookie Policy

What Are Cookies

Cookies are small text files that are stored on your device when you visit our website. They help us provide you with a better experience by remembering your preferences and improving our service.

How We Use Cookies

SproutAStory uses cookies for the following purposes:

Essential Cookies

These cookies are necessary for the website to function properly and cannot be disabled:

• Authentication: Keep you logged in to your account
• Security: Protect against fraud and unauthorized access
• Session Management: Maintain your session across pages
• Load Balancing: Distribute traffic for optimal performance

Functional Cookies

These cookies enhance your experience by remembering your preferences:

• Language Preferences: Remember your language choice
• Theme Settings: Save your display preferences
• Character Preferences: Remember recently used characters
• Story Settings: Save your preferred story length and themes

Analytics Cookies

These cookies help us understand how our service is used (all data is anonymized):

• Usage Analytics: Track which features are most popular
• Performance Monitoring: Identify and fix technical issues
• User Journey: Understand how users navigate our site
• Error Tracking: Monitor and resolve bugs

Third-Party Cookies

We use limited third-party services that may set their own cookies:

Payment Processing (Stripe)

• Secure payment processing and fraud prevention
• PCI-compliant transaction handling
• Subscription management

Content Delivery (Vercel/AWS)

• Fast content delivery and caching
• Geographic load balancing
• Performance optimization

Children's Privacy and Cookies

We take special care with children's data and cookies:

• We do not use tracking cookies for children under 13
• Only essential cookies are used for child accounts
• No behavioral advertising cookies are used
• Parents can review and control cookie settings
• All analytics data is anonymized and aggregated

Managing Your Cookie Preferences

Browser Settings

You can control cookies through your browser settings:

• Chrome: Settings → Privacy and Security → Cookies
• Firefox: Preferences → Privacy & Security → Cookies
• Safari: Preferences → Privacy → Cookies
• Edge: Settings → Cookies and Site Permissions

Cookie Consent

When you first visit our site, you can choose your cookie preferences:

• Accept all cookies for the full experience
• Accept only essential cookies for basic functionality
• Customize your preferences for specific cookie types
• Change your preferences at any time in account settings

Cookie Retention

Different cookies have different retention periods:

Session Cookies

• Deleted when you close your browser
• Used for temporary session management
• Essential for login and security

Persistent Cookies

• Authentication: Up to 30 days
• Preferences: Up to 1 year
• Analytics: Up to 2 years (anonymized)
• Security: Up to 90 days

Updates to This Policy

We may update this Cookie Policy from time to time. We will notify you of significant changes through:

• Email notification to registered users
• Banner notification on our website
• Updated "Last Modified" date at the top of this policy

Contact Us

If you have questions about our use of cookies: