We use cookies to run Ceylon Chat and, with your consent, to understand how it's used. Read our Cookie Policy.

Cookie Policy

Ceylon Chat / Cookie Policy

Effective date: 11 August 2026

1. What Are Cookies

Cookies are small text files that a website stores on your device when you visit it. They let a site remember information about your visit, such as your login state, preferences, and how you use the site. Similar technologies include local storage and pixels, and this policy covers those too. We use the word “cookies” in this policy to mean all of these technologies.

2. Our Approach to Consent

When you first visit Ceylon Chat from the European Economic Area (EEA), the UK, or Switzerland, we ask for your consent before setting any cookies that are not strictly necessary for the site to work, in line with the EU ePrivacy Directive and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). You can accept all cookies, reject non-essential cookies, or manage your choices at any time using the “Manage Cookie Preferences” link in the site footer. Strictly necessary cookies do not require consent because the site cannot function without them.

3. Categories of Cookies We Use

Strictly Necessary Cookies: required for core functionality such as logging in, keeping you signed in, remembering items in a form as you complete it, load balancing, and protecting the site against spam and attacks. These are always active and cannot be switched off.

Functional / Preference Cookies: remember choices you make (such as display settings) and support community features like notifications and the Credits/badges system, so you don’t have to re-enter this information on every visit.

Performance / Caching Cookies: help pages load faster and more reliably by allowing our caching system to serve you the correct, personalised version of a page (for example, a logged-in view versus a public view).

Analytics Cookies: help us understand how visitors use Ceylon Chat (such as which pages are viewed and for how long) so we can improve the platform. These are only set if you consent, and we use aggregated or pseudonymised data where possible.

Advertising Cookies: we currently display house ads promoting Ceylon Chat and local Sri Lankan businesses; these do not rely on third-party advertising cookies. If this changes in the future, we will update this policy and request consent before any advertising cookies are set.

4. Our Messaging System Does Not Use Cookies

Ceylon Chat’s private messaging feature (including chat, calls, and voice messages) is built to be privacy-friendly and sets no cookies at all. Instead, it stores a small amount of data locally in your own browser, using a technology called IndexedDB, purely so your recent conversations load quickly the next time you open them on the same device.

  • This local data stays on your device only — it is never sent to us or to any third party;
  • It is not used for advertising, tracking, or analytics of any kind;
  • You can clear it at any time by clearing your browser’s site data for ceylonchat.com;
  • No analytics or tracking scripts are loaded by the messaging system.

We disclose this here, even though it is not a cookie, in the interest of full transparency about the “similar technologies” referenced in Section 1.

5. Cookies We Use

Strictly Necessary

  • wordpress_logged_in_[hash], wordpress_sec_[hash] — keeps you securely logged in. Session / up to 2 weeks. First-party.
  • wp-settings-[UID], wp-settings-time-[UID] — remembers your WordPress admin display preferences (relevant for site staff). Up to 1 year. First-party.
  • bp-activity-oldest-page and similar BuddyPress session cookies — support activity feed and community features. Session. First-party.
  • litespeed_* / LSCACHE cookies — allow our page-caching system to serve you the correct personalised or public version of a page and improve load times. Session. First-party.
  • wordfence_verifiedHuman, wfwaf-authcookie-* — part of our Wordfence security firewall, used to distinguish legitimate visitors from malicious traffic. Session to 24 hours. First-party.
  • Honeypot anti-spam markers (WP Armour) — help detect automated bot submissions on our forms. Session. First-party.
  • PHPSESSID — general server session identifier used for security and site functionality. Session. First-party.

Functional

  • ceylonchat_cookie_consent — remembers your cookie consent choice so we don’t ask again on every visit. 6 months. First-party.
  • GamiPress-related session data — supports the Credits and badge system tied to your account activity. Session/account-linked. First-party.

Analytics (set only with consent)

  • _ga — Google Analytics, distinguishes unique visitors. 2 years. Third-party (Google).
  • _ga_[container-id] — Google Analytics, persists session state. 2 years. Third-party (Google).
  • _gid — Google Analytics, distinguishes visitors over a shorter window. 24 hours. Third-party (Google).

You can learn more about Google’s cookies and how Google processes data at policies.google.com/technologies/cookies.

6. Third-Party Content

Some pages may link to or embed content from third parties, such as social media follow/share buttons (Facebook, Twitter/X, YouTube, Pinterest, LinkedIn), or GIF/sticker providers inside messaging (such as Giphy or Stipop) if you choose to use them. These third parties may set their own cookies when you interact with their buttons or embedded content. We do not control these cookies; please refer to each third party’s own cookie or privacy policy for details.

7. How to Manage Cookies

You can manage or withdraw your consent at any time by clicking “Manage Cookie Preferences” in the footer of any page. You can also control or delete cookies through your browser settings — most browsers let you block cookies, delete existing cookies, or be notified when a cookie is set. Blocking strictly necessary cookies will prevent parts of Ceylon Chat (such as logging in) from working properly.

Since our analytics cookies are provided by Google, you can also opt out of Google Analytics tracking across all websites using the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.

8. Changes to This Cookie Policy

We may update this Cookie Policy from time to time to reflect changes in the cookies or local-storage technologies we use, or for legal or regulatory reasons. We will post any changes on this page with an updated effective date.

9. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Cookie Policy, please contact us at support@ceylonchat.com.

Please also review our Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions.