Cookie Policy (EU)
This page provides additional information specifically for visitors from the European Union and European Economic Area regarding our use of browser storage technologies, in accordance with the ePrivacy Directive and the GDPR.
1. Legal Framework
The storage of information on a user's device and the access to such information is regulated in the European Union primarily by:
- Directive 2002/58/EC (ePrivacy Directive), as amended by Directive 2009/136/EC — Article 5(3) requires consent before placing non-essential cookies or accessing stored information, unless the storage is strictly necessary.
- Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (GDPR) — where cookies or storage technologies constitute the processing of personal data, the GDPR's principles and legal bases apply.
- Guidelines of the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) — in particular, the EDPB Guidelines 05/2020 on consent and the Guidelines 01/2023 on the interplay between the ePrivacy Directive and the GDPR.
In Germany, the ePrivacy Directive is implemented by §25 TDDDG (Telekommunikation-Digitale-Dienste-Datenschutz-Gesetz).
2. Our Storage Practice
Laenethy Writers stores one (1) item in your browser's localStorage:
| Storage key | Legal basis | Purpose | Personal data? |
|---|---|---|---|
hpm_cookie_consent | Art. 5(3) ePrivacy Dir. — strictly necessary; §25(2) TDDDG | Remembers your consent preference so the banner does not reappear | No |
We do not use any other cookies, localStorage items, sessionStorage items, IndexedDB entries, device fingerprinting techniques, or supercookies.
3. Strictly Necessary Exemption
Article 5(3) of the ePrivacy Directive provides an exemption from the consent requirement for storage that is “strictly necessary in order for the provider of an information society service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user to provide the service.”
Our single localStorage entry (hpm_cookie_consent) qualifies for this exemption because:
- It is essential to operate the consent management mechanism that you have explicitly activated by interacting with our consent banner;
- Without it, the consent system cannot function — you would be re-prompted on every page visit, defeating the purpose of the consent mechanism entirely;
- It does not process personal data as defined by Article 4(1) GDPR — it stores only a consent status string with no linkage to your identity;
- It is not used for any purpose other than remembering your consent decision.
This position is consistent with Recital 25 of the ePrivacy Directive and the EDPB's guidance on strictly necessary cookies.
4. No Consent Required — What This Means for You
Because our sole storage item is strictly necessary, we are not required under EU law to obtain your prior consent before storing it. However, we display a consent notice on your first visit in the interest of transparency, and we provide you with the option to accept or decline. If you decline, we store this decision in localStorage to prevent further prompts — the practical content of the site remains fully accessible regardless of your choice, as we do not gate any content behind cookie consent.
5. Your Rights as an EU/EEA Resident
As a resident of the EU or EEA, you have the rights described in our Privacy Policy under the GDPR, including the right to access, rectification, erasure, restriction, data portability, and to object to processing. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with your national supervisory authority. A complete list of supervisory authorities is available at edpb.europa.eu.
6. Managing Storage in Your Browser
You may delete the hpm_cookie_consent localStorage item at any time via your browser's developer tools or by clearing site data in your browser settings. This will cause the consent notice to reappear on your next visit.
7. International Applicability
This Cookie Policy is designed to meet cookie and local-storage disclosure requirements beyond the EU/EEA as well, including the CCPA/CPRA (California), the UK GDPR, the LGPD (Brazil), PIPEDA (Canada), the Privacy Act 1988 (Australia), the Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023 (India), and the Personal Information Protection Act (South Korea). Because we use only a single, strictly necessary local-storage item and the cookie-less Vercel Web Analytics tool described above, no additional jurisdiction-specific cookie consent obligations arise beyond what is already described in this policy.
8. Contact the Data Controller
For all EU/EEA privacy matters:
Harbinger Bros. LLC
1309 Coffeen Avenue, Sheridan, WY 82801, USA
Email: support@harbingerpressmedia.com