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Privacy Policy
Google Analytics 4, Microsoft Clarity and Adsterra ads load by default on this site. The banner explains that and lets you reject them; Reject reloads the page with those services disabled and remembers your choice for 180 days. This page explains the services and storage used by this build.
Who runs this site
viewfinder.run is an independent guide to the 2023 puzzle game Viewfinder, published by the operator of this domain. Privacy questions and requests go to [email protected]. There are no accounts, no logins and no newsletter on this site.
What loads on a first visit
The site requests three third-party services by default, before you click anything: Google Analytics 4 for audience measurement, Microsoft Clarity for heatmaps and session recordings, and Adsterra for display advertising. The cookie banner is a notice and a withdrawal control, not a gate: Accept keeps the default, Reject saves a denied choice for 180 days and reloads the page without their scripts. YouTube is different — the player is inserted only when you press play on a video.
| Service | Purpose | Data it may receive | When it loads |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Analytics 4 (G-VRFJ46C7E8) | Audience measurement: pages, sessions, referrers, approximate location | Page URL, referrer, device and browser details, pseudonymous client ID, IP address | On page load, by default |
| Microsoft Clarity (project z67xmn2z5t) | Heatmaps and session replay to find confusing pages | Clicks, scrolls, pages viewed, device details, masked session recording, pseudonymous IDs | On page load, by default |
| Adsterra (publisher 3403020; units NativeBanner_1 32015373 and SocialBar_1 32015374) | Display advertising and frequency capping | IP address, user agent, page URL, ad interactions, cookie IDs | On page load, by default |
| YouTube (youtube-nocookie.com) | Plays the trailer or guide clip you asked for | IP address, browser details, the video requested | When you press play on a video |
Cookies and local storage
The first two records below are written by this site. Google and Clarity document the vendor cookie examples below; availability and lifetime depend on browser restrictions and vendor settings. The local review confirmed requests to www.googletagmanager.com, www.google-analytics.com, www.clarity.ms, scripts.clarity.ms, regional *.clarity.ms collectors and bicea.org. Ad creatives can contact additional delivery partners; a requested script may also be blocked by a browser or network.
| Name | Where | Purpose | Retention |
|---|---|---|---|
| vf_consent | localStorage on viewfinder.run | Records granted or denied, plus an expiry | 180 days |
| _clck / _clsk | First-party cookies used by Clarity | Browser identifier / links page views within a session | Vendor/browser policy; not independently measured here |
| vf_social_closed | localStorage on viewfinder.run | Remembers that you closed the Adsterra Social Bar | 180 days |
| _ga | cookie on .viewfinder.run (Google Analytics 4) | Distinguishes browsers for audience counts | Up to 2 years under the vendor default |
| _ga_<measurement suffix> | cookie on .viewfinder.run (Google Analytics 4) | Keeps the session state for this property | Up to 2 years under the vendor default |
Default loading and how to reject
A browser with no stored choice requests the three services immediately and shows the banner. Accept keeps that state. Reject saves vf_consent as denied, clears the ad mounts and reloads this page: Google Analytics, Clarity and Adsterra scripts are then omitted while that record remains valid. Requests already sent before rejection cannot be recalled. The three advertising consent signals are denied by default, while analytics_storage starts granted; rejecting leaves that default signal in place but prevents the Google script from loading. Cookie settings in the footer reopens the banner. Accept saves granted and reloads to restore the services. Global Privacy Control disables these services when the browser exposes that signal. YouTube remains a separate, explicit play-button request.
Legal basis and retention
The domain operator is responsible for operating this site and responding to privacy requests. Page delivery and security require technical request data. Analytics, session replay and advertising follow the default-on and Reject behaviour described above. We do not claim that displaying this notice alone establishes consent in every jurisdiction. The two site records expire after 180 days; Google, Clarity and Adsterra retention follows their settings and policies linked below. No independently verified project-specific server retention period is available in this review.
Your choices and rights
You can ask what personal data is held about you, ask for a copy, correction or erasure, object to processing, or withdraw consent by emailing [email protected]. You also have the right to complain to your local data-protection authority. For personalised advertising, use Google Ads Settings, YourAdChoices, Your Online Choices or the NAI opt-out. Adsterra's own privacy notice is at adsterra.com/privacy-policy.
International transfers and security
The services above are run by companies that may process data outside your country, including in the United States, under their own transfer safeguards. Pages are served over HTTPS. The site does not run its own server-side analytics database and does not sell personal data. Cloudflare serves the site infrastructure and routes email to the operator’s mail service. Contact messages include the address and content you send and may be stored for handling the enquiry. The browser records vf_consent and vf_social_closed stay in localStorage; the static site does not upload them to its own database.
Changes to this policy
When a service, cookie or retention period changes, this page is updated with a new date. The current version is dated 31 October 2026. The operator is the publisher of viewfinder.run.
Questions
Do ads and analytics load before I click Accept?
Yes. A first visit loads Google Analytics 4, Microsoft Clarity and Adsterra by default, and the banner tells you that. Reject turns them off for 180 days.
What is vf_consent?
A localStorage record of your banner choice and its expiry, kept for 180 days.
What is vf_social_closed?
A localStorage record that you closed the Adsterra Social Bar, kept for 180 days so it does not return on the next page view.
How do I change my choice?
Use Cookie settings in the footer, then Accept or Reject. The new choice replaces the old one immediately.
Sources
- Cloudflare privacy policy — checked 2026-10-31
- Clarity cookies — checked 2026-10-31
- Google Analytics cookie usage — checked 2026-10-31
- Google privacy policy — checked 2026-10-31
- Google Analytics 4 data retention — checked 2026-10-31
- Microsoft Clarity privacy statement — checked 2026-10-31
- Adsterra privacy policy — checked 2026-10-31
- Google Ads Settings — checked 2026-10-31
- YourAdChoices opt-out — checked 2026-10-31