What are Cookies?
Cookies are small text files that are placed on your computer or mobile device when you visit a website. They are widely used to make websites work more efficiently, as well as to provide information to the owners of the site. Cookies enable the website to remember your actions and preferences (such as login, language, font size, and other display preferences) over a period of time, so you don’t have to keep re-entering them whenever you come back to the site or browse from one page to another.
Types of Cookies We Use
We use various types of cookies on our Site, including:
- Strictly Necessary Cookies: These cookies are essential for the operation of our Site. They enable you to navigate the Site and use its features, such as accessing secure areas. Without these cookies, services you have asked for, like shopping baskets or e-billing, cannot be provided.
- Performance Cookies: These cookies collect information about how visitors use our Site, for example, which pages visitors go to most often, and if they get error messages from web pages. These cookies don't collect information that identifies a visitor. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. It is only used to improve how our Site works. We use tools like Google Analytics to help with this.
- Functionality Cookies: These cookies allow our Site to remember choices you make (such as your user name, language, or the region you are in) and provide enhanced, more personal features. For instance, a website may be able to provide you with local weather reports or traffic news by storing in a cookie the region in which you are currently located. Functionality cookies can also be used to remember changes you have made to text size, fonts, and other parts of web pages that you can customize. The information these cookies collect may be anonymized and they cannot track your browsing activity on other websites.
- Targeting or Advertising Cookies: These cookies are used to deliver advertisements more relevant to you and your interests. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advertisement as well as help measure the effectiveness of the advertising campaign. They are usually placed by advertising networks with the website operator’s permission. They remember that you have visited a website and this information is shared with other organizations such as advertisers. Quite often targeting or advertising cookies will be linked to site functionality provided by the other organization.
How We Use Cookies
We use cookies for the following purposes:
- To improve your browsing experience: Cookies enable us to remember your preferences and settings, so you don't have to re-enter them every time you visit our Site.
- To personalize content: We use cookies to display content that is relevant to your interests and needs.
- To analyze Site traffic: Cookies help us understand how visitors use our Site, so we can improve its performance and usability.
- To deliver targeted advertising: We may use cookies to show you advertisements that are relevant to your interests.
- Authentication: Cookies help us recognize you as a registered user when you log in, ensuring a secure and personalized experience.
- Security: Cookies help us to detect and prevent fraud and abuse, enhancing the security of our platform.
- Site Features and Services: Cookies enable the functionality of certain features and services on our site, such as remembering items in your shopping cart or facilitating social sharing.
Third-Party Cookies
In addition to our own cookies, we may also use third-party cookies on our Site. These cookies are placed by third-party service providers, such as advertising networks, analytics providers, and social media platforms. We do not control these cookies, and their use is subject to the third parties' privacy policies.
For instance, we utilize Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google, Inc. Google Analytics uses cookies to help us analyze how users use the Site. The information generated by the cookie about your use of the Site (including your IP address) will be transmitted to and stored by Google on servers in the United States. Google will use this information for the purpose of evaluating your use of the Site, compiling reports on website activity for website operators and providing other services relating to website activity and internet usage. Google may also transfer this information to third parties where required to do so by law, or where such third parties process the information on Google's behalf. Google will not associate your IP address with any other data held by Google. By using this Site, you consent to the processing of data about you by Google in the manner and for the purposes set out above.
User Control and Cookie Management
You have the right to control and manage cookies in several ways:
- Browser Settings: You can configure your web browser to accept or reject cookies, or to notify you each time a cookie is set. Please refer to your browser's help documentation for instructions on how to manage your cookie preferences. Note that disabling cookies may affect the functionality of our Site.
- Cookie Consent Tool: We may provide a cookie consent tool on our Site that allows you to customize your cookie preferences.
- Third-Party Opt-Out: You can opt-out of targeted advertising cookies by visiting the websites of third-party advertising networks. For example, you can visit the Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA) Consumer Choice Page or the Network Advertising Initiative (NAI) Opt-Out Tool to opt-out of participating advertising networks.
Specific Cookie Examples
To provide more transparency, here are some specific examples of the cookies we might use and their purpose:
- Session Cookie (Name: PHPSESSID): This is a strictly necessary cookie used to maintain your session while you browse our site. It expires when you close your browser.
- Google Analytics Cookie (_ga, _gid): These performance cookies are used to track website traffic and user behavior. They help us understand which pages are popular and how users navigate our site. They expire after varying durations (e.g., two years for _ga).
- Remember Me Cookie (If applicable): If you choose the "Remember Me" option when logging in, we might use a cookie to remember your login details for a specified period. This enhances convenience but should be used with caution on shared devices.
Changes to this Cookies Policy
We may update this Cookies Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or applicable laws. We will post any changes on our Site and update the "Last Updated" date at the top of this Cookies Policy. We encourage you to review this Cookies Policy periodically.
Contact Us
If you have any questions or concerns about our Cookies Policy, please contact us at Contact Us.