Cookie Policy

This page lists every cookie and similar technology used on https://rationaleservices.com, says what each one does, and shows how to turn off the ones that are not essential. Rationale Services operates this site.

1. What cookies and similar technologies are

A cookie is a small text file that a website asks your browser to store. On your next visit, the browser sends it back, so the site can recognize your session or remember a setting. A cookie set by this site is a first-party cookie; one set by another company whose code runs on a page is a third-party cookie.

We use the word "cookies" in this policy to cover several related tools:

• Cookies — small files stored by your browser, either for one session or for a set number of days.
• Local storage and session storage — browser storage that holds data without sending it with every request. We use it for form progress and your consent choice.
• Pixels and tracking tags — tiny image or script requests that tell an analytics or advertising service that a page was loaded.
• Software development kits (SDKs) — third-party code built into a page, such as a chat widget, that can set its own storage.

2. Why this site uses them

We use these tools for four reasons: to make the site work at all, to remember your preferences, to count and understand visits so we can improve pages, and — if and only if the relevant tags are deployed and you consent — to measure advertising. We do not use cookies to build a profile of you, and we do not sell information collected by cookies.

3. Cookie inventory

This is what the site sets.

Strictly necessary

• rs_session — set by Rationale Services (first party). Keeps your session connected as you move between pages. Lasts for the session and is deleted when you close the browser.
• rs_consent — set by Rationale Services (first party). Stores which cookie categories you accepted or refused. Kept until you change your choice or we ask again.
• rs_csrf — set by Rationale Services (first party). A security token that stops a third-party site submitting our forms on your behalf. Lasts for the session.
• AWSALB / rs_lb — set by our hosting provider or load balancer. Sends your requests to the same server so pages and form submissions do not break. Lasts 7 days.

Functional

• rs_lang — set by Rationale Services (first party). Remembers your language or region choice. Lasts 12 months.
• rs_form_progress (local storage) — set by Rationale Services (first party). Keeps what you have typed into a long form if the page reloads. Held until you submit or clear it.

Analytics

• _ga — set by Google Analytics 4. Distinguishes one visitor from another so visits can be counted. Lasts 2 years.
• _ga_<ID> — set by Google Analytics 4. Holds the session state for this specific property. Lasts 2 years.
• _gid — set by Google Analytics 4. Distinguishes visitors over a short window. Lasts 24 hours.

If we add a tool in a category that is not listed here, we will add it to this inventory and ask for your consent before it runs.

4. Consent

Strictly necessary cookies are set as soon as you open the site, because the site cannot work without them. Everything else waits for you.

How our consent works:

1. On your first visit, a banner appears. No functional, analytics or marketing cookie is set before you choose.
2. Consent is granular. You can accept or refuse each category separately — functional, analytics and marketing — rather than all or nothing.
3. Refusing is as easy as accepting. The banner offers a "Reject all" control with the same prominence as "Accept all."
4. Closing or dismissing the banner is not consent. We treat it as a refusal of all non-essential categories.
5. Your choice is recorded, with the date and the categories, so we can show that consent was given and what it covered.

Withdrawing consent

A "Cookie settings" link sits in the footer of every page, permanently. Open it at any time to see your current choices, change a category or withdraw consent entirely. When you withdraw, we stop setting cookies in that category immediately and delete the ones we can delete from the browser. Some third-party cookies must be cleared in your browser settings, as described in section 5.

We ask for consent again periodically, and sooner if we add a tool in a new category.

5. Controlling cookies in your browser

Your browser can block or delete cookies regardless of what you chose on our banner.

• Google Chrome: Settings, then Privacy and security, then Third-party cookies. You can block third-party cookies, or use "See all site data and permissions" to remove data for one site.
• Apple Safari: Settings or Preferences, then Privacy. Safari blocks cross-site tracking by default. Use "Manage Website Data" to remove stored data for one site.
• Mozilla Firefox: Settings, then Privacy & Security. Choose Standard, Strict or Custom protection, and use "Manage Data" to clear one site.
• Microsoft Edge: Settings, then Cookies and site permissions, then Manage and delete cookies and site data.

Mobile browsers have the same settings under a different menu layout. Each browser's own help pages carry the current instructions, which change with each release.

What breaks if you block cookies. Blocking strictly necessary cookies will stop forms from submitting and may log you out repeatedly. Blocking functional cookies means the site forgets your language choice and loses what you typed in a long form if the page reloads. Blocking analytics or marketing cookies does not affect how the site works for you at all.

6. Global Privacy Control and browser signals

Some browsers and extensions send a Global Privacy Control signal, which tells a site not to sell or share personal information. Where our consent tool detects a GPC signal, we treat it as a refusal of marketing cookies and of any sharing for advertising purposes, without you having to use the banner. We honor GPC on every page where it is sent.

7. Do Not Track

Do Not Track is an older browser signal with no agreed standard for how a site should respond. Our site does not respond to Do Not Track. Use the cookie settings link or your browser's cookie controls instead, and rely on GPC where your browser supports it.

8. Server logs are not cookies

Separately from cookies, our web server keeps standard logs of each request: IP address, date and time, the page requested, the response code, the referring page and the browser user-agent string. These logs are created by the server, not by a cookie, so blocking cookies does not stop them. We use them for security, abuse investigation and diagnosing errors. We keep them for a limited period and then delete them.

9. How long we keep consent records

We keep a record of your consent choice — the categories, the date and the policy version — so that we can demonstrate consent if asked. The record is kept separately from the cookie itself, so clearing your browser does not erase our proof of consent. It contains no information about the pages you viewed. Ask us and we will tell you the current retention period for consent records, or send you your own record.

10. Changes to this policy

We update this page whenever we add, remove or change a cookie or a tag. The effective date at the top shows the current version. If we add a tool in a new category, we will ask for your consent again before it runs.

11. Contact us

Questions about cookies, or a request to see your consent record:

• Rationale Services
• 6825 Jimmy Carter Blvd, Suite 1520, Norcross, GA 30071, USA
• Phone: +1 (470) 359-5949
• Email: office@rationaleservices.com
• Website: https://rationaleservices.com

How we handle the information behind these cookies is set out in our Privacy Policy.