Four first-party session cookies support third-party authentication and are labeled Essential: shark-oauth-link, shark-oauth-verify, shark-oauth-referrer and shark-oauth-skip-prompt. Each expires at the end of the session. A fifth cookie in the same family, shark-oauth-challenge, appears in the next table row.
All four are Session cookies with provenance Surfshark.
Not stated here
The table does not say which third-party sign-in providers these cookies serve.
Account & Service Control · Company practice
Final first-party table rows: sign-in challenge and onboarding upgrade routing
The first-party cookie table ends with two more cookies: shark-oauth-challenge (session, supports third-party authentication, Essential), part of the same sign-in family listed earlier, and surfshark-onboarding-upgrade-visited (1 year, manages session routing following interaction with the upgrade interface, Functional).
surfshark-onboarding-upgrade-visited 1 year Surfshark Manages session routing following interaction with the upgrade interface Functional
Qualifications & exceptions
shark-oauth-challenge is a session cookie; surfshark-onboarding-upgrade-visited lasts 1 year despite its 'session routing' purpose.
Not stated here
The table does not say which third-party authentication providers are involved.
Account & Service Control · User right or choice
You can control cookies through the footer link and browser settings
Surfshark says you can control the cookies deployed on your devices: you may update your cookie preferences at any time through the 'Cookie Preferences' link in the Website footer, and the majority of cookie types can be regulated or eradicated through your browser's configuration options. It warns that rejecting cookies may limit the Website's functionality and you may lose access to some features.
Supporting quotations
How to control cookies?
You can control the cookies deployed on your devices.
You may update your cookie preferences at any time by selecting the 'Cookie Preferences' link in the Website footer.
the majority of cookie types can be regulated or eradicated via your web browser's configuration options
when you choose to reject cookies, this choice may limit the functionality of the Website and you may lose access to some of its features
Qualifications & exceptions
The browser-settings route covers the majority of cookie types, not all.
Rejecting cookies may limit Website functionality and access to some features.
Not stated here
The policy does not say which cookie types cannot be controlled through the browser, though section 3 marks several providers as 'Cannot be turned off'.
Cross-references
contrast (model-proposed): Essential payment, security and platform providers cannot be turned off — contrast: Section 4 says you can control the cookies deployed on your devices, while the provider table marks several Essential providers as 'Cannot be turned off'. Section 4 limits browser control to the majority of cookie types, but does not say which ones are excluded.
Account & Service Control · Procedure
Links to browser cookie instructions
For detailed instructions on adjusting cookie preferences, Surfshark points to links for Google Chrome, Apple Safari, Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox and Opera. These are links to outside support pages, not instructions in the policy itself.
Supporting quotations
For detailed instructions on adjusting cookie preferences within various commonly used browsers, please consult the following directional links:
Instructions are on the browsers' own support pages, which are not supplied in this document.
Account & Service Control · User right or choice
Opt-out pages for advertising cookies
To disable advertising cookies, Surfshark points to the Network Advertising Initiative's opt-out page, the Digital Advertising Alliance's opt-out page, and youronlinechoices.eu.
Supporting quotations
if you would like to disable advertising cookies, please learn more at
These are outside opt-out pages operated by other organizations, not controls on Surfshark's own Website.
Not stated here
The policy does not say whether using these pages affects every provider listed in the third-party table.
Account & Service Control · User right or choice
Browser settings are offered instead of do-not-track
Surfshark says you can tweak your browser settings to achieve very similar results, and can change your privacy preferences for cookies and similar technologies through your browser: accept all cookies, block certain cookies, require your consent before a cookie is placed, or block all cookies. It warns that blocking all cookies will affect your online experience and may prevent you from enjoying the full features of the Website. This matches section 4, which also offers the 'Cookie Preferences' footer link and warns that rejecting cookies may limit functionality.
Supporting quotations
You can tweak your specific browser settings to achieve very similar results.
you can change your privacy preferences regarding the use of cookies and similar technologies through your browser
You may set your browser to accept all cookies, block certain cookies, require your consent before a cookie is placed in your browser, or block all cookies.
blocking all cookies will affect your online experience and may prevent you from enjoying the full features offered by our Website
How to control cookies?
You may update your cookie preferences at any time by selecting the 'Cookie Preferences' link in the Website footer.
Qualifications & exceptions
Blocking all cookies may degrade the experience and limit Website features.
The browser route is described as achieving 'very similar results', not the same as honoring a do-not-track signal.
Not stated here
The policy does not say in what way the results are 'very similar' to a do-not-track signal, and browser settings do not by themselves cover non-cookie technologies such as pixels and web beacons that the policy's definition of cookies includes.