Legal
Which cookies and browser storage AI Panic uses, and why — nothing more.
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Cookies are small text files a website stores in your browser; local storage is a similar mechanism for larger, browser-only data. Both can be strictly necessary (the service fails without them) or optional (analytics, advertising). This page explains exactly which ones AI Panic uses.
1. Necessary — authentication and security. Sign-in and sessions on AI Panic are provided by Clerk. Clerk sets the cookies needed to authenticate you, keep your session and protect your account. Without them, sign-in cannot work. Clerk's own notices describe the technology in detail: clerk.com/privacy.
2. Functional — interface preferences. AI Panic stores a small number of interface states in your browser so the product behaves the way you left it (see the inventory below). These do not track you and are not shared.
3. Stripe — during checkout only. If and when you open the Stripe checkout for an AI Panic Plus subscription, Stripe may set cookies required for payment processing and fraud prevention, under stripe.com/privacy. Outside the checkout, Stripe sets nothing on AI Panic.
4. Analytics and advertising — currently none. AI Panic uses no analytics cookies, no advertising trackers and no third-party marketing pixels. Because no non-essential tracking exists, no consent tool is currently needed. If we ever introduce non-essential tracking, it will run only after your prior choice where applicable law requires it, and withdrawing that choice will be as easy as giving it.
| Provider | Name / category | Purpose | Party | Duration | Necessity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clerk | Session and authentication cookies (managed by Clerk) | Sign-in, session continuity, account security | First-party, set by Clerk | Session-based and short-lived; exact names and lifetimes are managed by Clerk and may change | Necessary |
| AI Panic | sidebar_state | Remembers whether the sidebar is open or closed | First-party | 7 days | Functional |
| AI Panic | aipanic:comment-draft:* (local storage) | Keeps an unfinished comment draft so it survives a page reload | First-party, browser only | Until the comment is posted or the draft removed | Functional |
| Stripe | Checkout and fraud-prevention cookies (managed by Stripe) | Payment processing and fraud prevention | Third-party, during Plus checkout only | Managed by Stripe, limited to the checkout context | Necessary during checkout |
This table lists only behavior verified in the running product. If a row is not here, we do not set it.
Every browser lets you view, delete and block cookies and local storage (usually under Settings → Privacy). Blocking functional storage only means the interface forgets your preferences and drafts. Blocking necessary authentication cookies means sign-in — and everything that requires an account — will not work. Browsing the public feed without an account does not require any of them.
We update this policy when the storage behavior of the product changes. The current version and its update date are always shown at the top of this page.