Cookie Policy
Effective Date: March 10, 2026 | Last Updated: March 10, 2026
1. Introduction
Welcome to the Cookie Policy for bbqchicken.net (“the Website,” “we,” “us,” or “our”). This Cookie Policy explains what cookies and similar tracking technologies are, how and why we use them on our Website, and what choices you have regarding their use.
bbqchicken.net is a barbecue and grilling recipe blog that serves readers in the United States and internationally. Like the vast majority of professional websites, we use cookies to ensure the Website functions properly, to improve your browsing experience, to analyze how our Website is used, and to support our advertising and affiliate marketing activities.
This Cookie Policy should be read alongside our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service, which provide additional information about how we collect, use, and protect your personal data.
By continuing to use bbqchicken.net, you consent to the use of cookies and similar technologies as described in this Cookie Policy. If you do not agree with our use of cookies, you can adjust your browser settings to refuse cookies or you can stop using the Website. Please see Section 7 (“Managing Cookies”) for detailed instructions on how to control cookies.
2. What Are Cookies
Cookies are small text files that are stored on your computer, smartphone, tablet, or other device when you visit a website. Cookies are widely used by website owners to make their websites work efficiently, to improve the user experience, and to provide reporting information.
Cookies set by the website owner (in this case, bbqchicken.net) are called first-party cookies. Cookies set by parties other than the website owner are called third-party cookies. Third-party cookies enable third-party features or functionality to be provided on or through the Website, such as advertising, analytics, and interactive content.
2.1 Other Tracking Technologies
In addition to cookies, we and our third-party partners may use other similar tracking technologies on our Website, including:
- Web Beacons (Pixel Tags): Small, transparent image files embedded in web pages or emails that track whether a page has been viewed or an email has been opened.
- Local Storage: A method that allows websites to store data locally within your browser. Unlike cookies, data stored in local storage does not expire automatically and is not sent to the server with every request.
- Session Storage: Similar to local storage, but data is cleared when the browser tab is closed.
- Device Fingerprinting: A technique used to identify a device based on its configuration, such as browser type, screen resolution, installed plugins, and other settings.
Throughout this Cookie Policy, when we refer to “cookies,” we include these and other similar tracking technologies unless otherwise stated.
3. How We Use Cookies
bbqchicken.net uses cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
- Essential Website Operations: Some cookies are strictly necessary for the Website to function. These cookies enable core functionality such as page navigation, access to secure areas, and ensuring the Website loads correctly. The Website cannot function properly without these cookies.
- Performance and Analytics: We use analytics cookies to understand how visitors interact with our Website. These cookies collect information about which pages are visited most often, how visitors navigate between pages, how long they spend on each page, and whether they encounter any error messages. This data helps us improve the Website’s performance and user experience.
- Advertising: We use advertising cookies to display relevant advertisements to our visitors. These cookies track your browsing habits and allow advertising networks to deliver targeted ads that are more likely to be of interest to you. They also help us measure the effectiveness of our advertising campaigns.
- Affiliate Tracking: When you click an affiliate link on bbqchicken.net, a cookie may be placed on your device by the affiliate network or retailer. This cookie tracks your visit and any purchases you make, enabling us to earn a commission on qualifying sales.
- Functionality and Preferences: These cookies allow the Website to remember choices you make, such as your preferred language, region, font size, or other customizable elements. They provide enhanced, more personalized features.
- Security: Security cookies help protect the Website and its users from potential security threats, including cross-site request forgery (CSRF) attacks, spam, and unauthorized access.
4. Types of Cookies We Use
The following table provides a detailed overview of the specific cookies used on bbqchicken.net, organized by category:
4.1 Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are essential for the Website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually set in response to actions you take, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in, or filling in forms.
| Cookie Name | Provider | Purpose | Type | Duration |
| PHPSESSID | bbqchicken.net | Preserves user session state across page requests. | Session | End of session |
| cookieconsent | bbqchicken.net | Stores your cookie consent preferences. | Persistent | 12 months |
| csrf_token | bbqchicken.net | Prevents cross-site request forgery attacks on forms. | Session | End of session |
| wp_sec | bbqchicken.net | WordPress security cookie for authenticated sessions. | Session | End of session |
4.2 Performance and Analytics Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our Website. They help us understand which pages are the most popular, which are the least popular, and how visitors move around the site.
| Cookie Name | Provider | Purpose | Type | Duration |
| _ga | Google Analytics | Distinguishes unique users by assigning a randomly generated number as a client identifier. | Persistent | 2 years |
| _ga_* | Google Analytics | Used by Google Analytics 4 to maintain session state. | Persistent | 2 years |
| _gid | Google Analytics | Stores and updates a unique value for each page visited. Used to calculate visitor, session, and campaign data. | Persistent | 24 hours |
| _gat | Google Analytics | Used to throttle request rate to Google Analytics, limiting data collection on high-traffic sites. | Persistent | 1 minute |
| _gat_gtag_* | Google Analytics | Used to throttle request rate for Google Analytics via Google Tag Manager. | Persistent | 1 minute |
4.3 Advertising and Targeting Cookies
These cookies are used to deliver advertisements that are relevant to you and your interests. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an ad and to measure the effectiveness of advertising campaigns.
| Cookie Name | Provider | Purpose | Type | Duration |
| IDE | Google (DoubleClick) | Used by Google DoubleClick to register and report the user’s actions after viewing or clicking an advertiser’s ad. Measures ad effectiveness and presents targeted ads. | Persistent | 13 months |
| DSID | Google (DoubleClick) | Used to identify a signed-in user on non-Google sites for ad personalization. | Persistent | 2 weeks |
| NID | Registers a unique ID to identify a returning user’s device for targeted advertising. | Persistent | 6 months | |
| CONSENT | Tracks the user’s consent status for Google services on the current domain. | Persistent | 20 years | |
| test_cookie | Google (DoubleClick) | Used to check if the user’s browser supports cookies. | Session | 15 minutes |
| __gads | Google AdSense | Measures interactions with the ads on the Website and prevents the same ads from being shown too many times. | Persistent | 13 months |
| __gpi | Google AdSense | Used by Google AdSense to collect data on ad displays and clicks for publisher ad revenue optimization. | Persistent | 13 months |
4.4 Affiliate Tracking Cookies
These cookies are placed by affiliate networks and retailers when you click on affiliate links on our Website. They track your visit and any resulting purchases so that we can earn a referral commission.
| Cookie Name | Provider | Purpose | Type | Duration |
| session-id | Amazon | Assigns a unique session ID for tracking user visits from affiliate links to Amazon.com. | Persistent | 2 years |
| session-id-time | Amazon | Records the time of the session ID assignment for affiliate tracking expiration. | Persistent | 2 years |
| ubid-main | Amazon | Unique browser identifier used by Amazon for affiliate attribution and personalization. | Persistent | 2 years |
| Various | ShareASale / CJ | Affiliate network cookies that track click-throughs and conversions from bbqchicken.net to merchant sites. | Persistent | 30–90 days |
4.5 Functionality and Preference Cookies
These cookies enable the Website to provide enhanced functionality and personalization. They may be set by us or by third-party providers whose services we have added to our pages.
| Cookie Name | Provider | Purpose | Type | Duration |
| wordpress_logged_in_* | bbqchicken.net | Indicates when a user is logged in and identifies the user for content personalization. | Session | End of session |
| wp-settings-* | bbqchicken.net | Stores user interface customization preferences in the WordPress dashboard. | Persistent | 12 months |
| comment_author_* | bbqchicken.net | Saves commenter’s name, email, and URL to pre-fill comment forms on return visits. | Persistent | 12 months |
5. Third-Party Cookies
In addition to the cookies we set directly, various third parties may set cookies on your device when you visit bbqchicken.net. These third parties include:
- Google (Analytics, AdSense, DoubleClick): Google sets cookies to provide analytics data about Website traffic, to serve targeted advertisements through Google AdSense, and to measure advertising performance through the DoubleClick ad network.
- Amazon Associates: When you click an affiliate link that directs you to Amazon.com, Amazon may set cookies on your device to track your visit and any purchases, enabling us to earn affiliate commissions.
- Other Affiliate Networks: We participate in affiliate programs through networks such as ShareASale and CJ Affiliate. These networks may set their own cookies to track referrals and conversions originating from our Website.
- Social Media Platforms: If we embed social media sharing buttons or content widgets from platforms such as Facebook, Twitter (X), Pinterest, or Instagram, those platforms may set cookies to track your interaction with their embedded content.
- Content Delivery Networks (CDNs): We may use CDN services (such as Cloudflare or similar providers) to improve the speed and security of the Website. These services may set their own cookies for security and performance purposes.
We do not control the cookies set by third parties. Each third party sets its cookies according to its own cookie and privacy policies. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of these third parties for more information about their use of cookies:
| Third Party | Privacy Policy |
| Google (Analytics & Ads) | https://policies.google.com/privacy |
| Amazon Associates | https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=468496 |
| ShareASale | https://www.shareasale.com/PrivacyPolicy.pdf |
| CJ Affiliate | https://www.cj.com/legal/privacy-policy-services |
6. Google Advertising Cookies
Because Google advertising is a significant component of how bbqchicken.net generates revenue, this section provides additional detail about how Google’s advertising cookies work on our Website.
6.1 Google AdSense
bbqchicken.net uses Google AdSense to display advertisements. Google AdSense uses cookies to serve ads based on your prior visits to our Website and other websites on the internet. Google’s advertising cookies (including the DoubleClick cookie) enable Google and its partners to serve ads to you based on your browsing history and interests.
Google AdSense may collect the following types of information through cookies:
- Pages you have viewed on bbqchicken.net and other websites.
- Ads you have previously seen and interacted with.
- Your general geographic location based on your IP address.
- Your device type, browser, operating system, and screen resolution.
- Demographic and interest data inferred from your browsing behavior.
6.2 Google Analytics
bbqchicken.net uses Google Analytics to collect anonymized data about how visitors use the Website. Google Analytics uses first-party cookies to track visitor interactions. The information generated by the cookie about your use of the Website is transmitted to and stored by Google on servers in the United States.
Google Analytics collects data such as:
- The number of visitors to the Website and the pages they visit.
- The duration of each visit and the time spent on individual pages.
- The sources through which visitors arrive at the Website (search engines, social media, direct visits, referrals).
- The geographic location of visitors (country, city, and region level).
- The devices, browsers, and operating systems used to access the Website.
- User behavior flow and site navigation patterns.
Google Analytics data is used solely for the purpose of understanding and improving the performance of bbqchicken.net. We do not use Google Analytics data to personally identify individual visitors.
6.3 Google Advertising Opt-Out Options
Google provides several options for users who wish to control or opt out of personalized advertising:
- Google Ads Settings: Visit https://adssettings.google.com/ to manage your ad personalization preferences and opt out of personalized ads.
- Google Analytics Opt-Out: Install the Google Analytics Opt-Out Browser Add-on, available at https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout, to prevent your data from being used by Google Analytics.
- DoubleClick Opt-Out: Visit https://adssettings.google.com/ to opt out of the DoubleClick cookie used for interest-based advertising.
- NAI Opt-Out: Visit the Network Advertising Initiative (NAI) opt-out page at http://optout.networkadvertising.org/ to opt out of targeted advertising from NAI member companies.
- DAA Opt-Out: Visit the Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA) opt-out page at http://www.aboutads.info/choices/ for additional opt-out tools.
| Important Note: Opting out of advertising cookies does not mean you will no longer see ads on bbqchicken.net. It means the ads you see will be generic and not tailored to your interests. Essential and analytics cookies may still be set even after you opt out of advertising cookies. |
7. Managing Cookies
You have the right to decide whether to accept or reject cookies. You can exercise your cookie preferences in several ways:
7.1 Browser Settings
Most web browsers allow you to control cookies through their settings. You can set your browser to refuse all cookies, accept only first-party cookies, delete cookies when you close your browser, or notify you when a website attempts to set a cookie. The method for managing cookies varies by browser. Below are links to cookie management instructions for the most commonly used browsers:
7.2 Industry Opt-Out Tools
In addition to browser-level controls, you can use the following industry opt-out tools to manage cookies from advertising networks:
- Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA): http://www.aboutads.info/choices/
- Network Advertising Initiative (NAI): http://optout.networkadvertising.org/
- European Interactive Digital Advertising Alliance (EDAA): http://www.youronlinechoices.eu/ (for European visitors)
- Google Ads Settings: https://adssettings.google.com/
7.3 Mobile Device Settings
If you access bbqchicken.net from a mobile device, you can manage tracking and advertising preferences through your device’s operating system settings:
- iOS Devices: Go to Settings > Privacy & Security > Tracking to manage app tracking. Go to Settings > Privacy & Security > Apple Advertising to limit ad tracking.
- Android Devices: Go to Settings > Google > Ads to opt out of ad personalization and reset your advertising ID.
7.4 Consequences of Disabling Cookies
Please be aware that if you choose to block or delete cookies, some features and functionality of bbqchicken.net may not work as intended. Specifically:
- You may be unable to save your cookie consent preferences, resulting in the consent prompt appearing on every visit.
- Certain interactive features, such as comment forms, may require you to re-enter your information each time.
- Your browsing experience may be less personalized.
- Advertisements displayed on the Website will be generic rather than tailored to your interests.
- Some third-party embedded content may not display or function correctly.
| Recommendation: We recommend allowing at least strictly necessary cookies, as blocking them may significantly impair the Website’s core functionality. You can safely block advertising and analytics cookies without affecting the Website’s basic operation. |
8. Changes to This Cookie Policy
bbqchicken.net reserves the right to update or modify this Cookie Policy at any time to reflect changes in our practices, changes in applicable laws and regulations, or updates to the cookies and tracking technologies used on our Website.
When we make changes to this Cookie Policy, we will update the “Last Updated” date at the top of this page. If we make significant changes that materially affect how we use cookies or your rights regarding cookies, we may, at our discretion, provide additional notice through a prominent announcement on the Website.
We encourage you to review this Cookie Policy periodically to stay informed about how we use cookies and related technologies. Your continued use of bbqchicken.net after any changes to this Cookie Policy constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.
8.1 Policy Version History
| Version | Date | Summary of Changes |
| 1.0 | March 10, 2026 | Initial publication of the Cookie Policy. |
9. Contact Information
If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Cookie Policy, the cookies used on bbqchicken.net, or your choices and rights related to cookies and tracking technologies, please do not hesitate to contact us:
| Website | https://bbqchicken.net/ |
| bbqchicken@bbqchicken.net | |
| Cookie Policy URL | https://bbqchicken.net/cookie-policy/ |
| Response Time | We aim to respond to all inquiries within 48 business hours. |
We are committed to being transparent about our use of cookies and to respecting your choices regarding your privacy and data. If you believe that we are not adhering to the practices described in this Cookie Policy, please contact us and we will work to address your concerns promptly.
Thank you for taking the time to read our Cookie Policy.
Your privacy matters to us, and your trust is something we never take for granted.
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