1. What is a cookie?
A cookie is a small text file that a website places on your device when you visit. Cookies allow sites to remember your preferences, keep you logged in, analyze traffic, and (sometimes) display targeted ads. Similar technologies include local storage, session storage, pixels, fingerprinting and SDKs.
2. How we use cookies
CloudDeals is a static, content-driven affiliate site. We use the minimum cookies necessary to operate. We do not run targeted advertising, retargeting pixels or behavioural-profiling cookies on this site.
3. Types of cookies
| Category | Purpose | Consent required? |
|---|---|---|
| Strictly necessary | Essential site functioning, security, fraud prevention | No (legitimate interest) |
| Functional / preferences | Remember UI choices (e.g. dismiss top bar) | No |
| Performance / analytics | Aggregate visitor statistics | Yes (where required by law) |
| Affiliate / marketing | Track referrals to merchants | Set by merchant after click |
4. Specific cookies we set
Cookies set directly by the cloudways.discount domain:
| Cookie | Purpose | Duration | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
cd_topbar_dismissed | Remembers if you closed the promo top-bar | 30 days (localStorage) | Functional |
__cf_bm | Cloudflare bot management (set by hosting) | 30 minutes | Strictly necessary |
cf_clearance | Cloudflare DDoS protection challenge | 30 minutes | Strictly necessary |
Note: this list reflects cookies as of the "Last updated" date. The actual set may vary slightly between visits.
5. Third-party cookies
When you click an affiliate link, the destination merchant drops their own tracking cookie on your browser. We have no control over these cookies — they are governed by the merchant's privacy policy.
| Domain | Set by | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| cloudways.com | Cloudways | Track affiliate referral & sale attribution |
| shareasale.com | ShareASale | Affiliate network tracking |
| fonts.googleapis.com | Google Fonts | Web font caching (no tracking cookies) |
| cdn.jsdelivr.net | jsDelivr | Static asset CDN (no tracking) |
6. Legal basis (GDPR / ePrivacy)
For visitors in the EEA / UK:
- Strictly necessary cookies — set under our legitimate interest (no consent required)
- Analytics & affiliate cookies — set under your consent. You may refuse or withdraw consent at any time
7. How to manage / delete cookies
Most browsers let you control cookies through their settings:
You can also use privacy-focused browsers (Brave, DuckDuckGo) or extensions (uBlock Origin, Privacy Badger) to block tracking cookies automatically.
Heads up: blocking strictly-necessary cookies may break parts of the site (security challenges, layout). Blocking affiliate cookies will cause your purchase to not count as a referral — if you want to support us, please leave them enabled.
8. Do Not Track (DNT)
We respect the DNT: 1 header. When DNT is enabled in your browser, we do not load any analytics scripts or non-essential cookies.
9. Changes to this policy
We may update this Cookie Policy as cookies on the site change. The "Last updated" date at the top reflects the latest revision. Material changes will be announced via a banner.
10. Contact
Questions about cookies? Email [email protected] or use our contact form.