In our digital realm, cookies play a pivotal role in enriching your online experience. Imagine them as small, discrete packets of data, stashed away on your device by websites you visit. They’re not just bits and bytes, they’re your digital footprints, enabling websites to recall your visit and preferences, thus tailoring your experience to your liking.
What Are Cookies?
Cookies, in the digital world, are small pieces of data sent from a website and stored on the user computer by the user web browser while the user is browsing. These tiny data packets are designed to be a reliable mechanism for websites to remember stateful information (such as items added in the shopping cart in an online store) or to record the user browsing activity (including clicking particular buttons, logging in, or recording which pages were visited in the past).
Cookies can be classified into several types based on their function, duration, and the domain that places them:
- Session Cookies: These are temporary cookies that are deleted when you close your browser. They’re typically used to manage sessions, such as user login information, and to temporarily store input information in forms.
- Persistent Cookies: Also known as stored or permanent cookies, they remain on your device for a predetermined period specified in the cookie. These cookies are used to remember your preferences and actions across the site (or in some cases across different websites) to provide a more personalized experience.
- First-party Cookies: These cookies are set by the website you’re visiting. Only the website that creates these cookies can read them.
- Third-party Cookies: Created by domains other than the one you are visiting directly, these are often used for online-advertising purposes and social media interactions.
- Secure Cookies: These cookies are used exclusively over encrypted connections (HTTPS). They ensure that data contained in the cookie is transmitted securely, reducing the risk of eavesdropping by third parties.
- Http Only Cookies: This attribute is used to prevent scripts on the website from accessing the cookie. It’s a security feature that helps mitigate the risk of client-side script attacks (such as Cross-Site Scripting or XSS).
- Performance/Analytical Cookies: These cookies collect information about how you use a website, like which pages you visited and which links you clicked on. None of this information can be used to identify you. It’s all aggregated and, therefore, anonymized.
- Functional Cookies: These cookies allow a website to remember choices you have made in the past, like what language you prefer or what your user name and password are so you can automatically log in.
- Targeting Cookies or Advertising Cookies: These cookies track your browsing habits to enable advertisers to present you with ads more relevant to you and your interests.
Types of Cookies We Embrace
- Essential Cookies: The backbone of our website, ensuring its smooth operation.
- Analytics Cookies: Our digital magnifying glass, offering insights into visitor behavior and website performance.
- Functionality Cookies: Remembering you and your preferences for a bespoke digital experience.
- Targeting Cookies: Tailoring the web is vastness to your interests.
In-Depth Cookies Exploration
| Cookie Name | Purpose | Lifespan |
| _ga | To differentiate between users by assigning a randomly generated number as a client identifier. It’s included in each page request in a site and used to calculate visitor, session, and campaign data for the site analytics reports. | 2 years |
| _gid | Works hand in hand with the _ga cookie to update and record how often a user visits the website, as well as data on the visitor first and last visit. | 24 hours |
| _gat | Used by Google Analytics to throttle the request rate, limiting the collection of data on high traffic sites. | 1 minute |
| ga<container-id> | Enables the collection of data on user behavior for statistical purposes without personally identifying individual visitors. | 2 years |
| gac_gb<property-id> | Contains campaign-related information for the user. Google Analytics uses this cookie to understand the user journey and interaction with the website. | 90 day |
Your Privacy, Our Priority
In this interconnected world, your privacy stands paramount. Our Cookies Policy is crafted not just to comply with regulations but to honor your digital presence on our website. We believe in transparency and control, ensuring you navigate our digital expanse with confidence and ease.
Taking Charge of Your Cookies
Every visitor has unique preferences when it comes to their online journey. Recognizing this, we empower you to tailor your cookie settings to match your personal privacy comfort level. Here’s how you can navigate through your browser is settings to customize your cookie preferences:
- Session vs. Persistent: Decide whether you’re comfortable with cookies that remember you on subsequent visits or prefer those that vanish after you close your browser.
- Analytics and Performance: You have the option to either enable or disable cookies that help us understand how you interact with our website, ensuring we can make necessary improvements.
- Functional Preferences: These cookies remember your preferences and settings, making your return visits more personalized. Adjust these to enhance your website experience.
- Targeted Advertising: Control whether you see advertisements tailored to your interests by managing these cookies.
Guidance on Managing Cookies
For those looking to delve into the specifics of managing cookie settings, below are tailored instructions for various browsers. Each browser offers a unique path to privacy management:
- Google Chrome: Access your settings through the ‘Privacy and security’ section to manage cookies.
- Mozilla Firefox: Use the ‘Privacy & Security’ menu to adjust your cookie settings.
- Apple Safari: Preferences in Safari allow you to manage your privacy settings, including cookies.
- Microsoft Edge: Dive into ‘Settings’ followed by ‘Privacy, search, and services’ to find cookie management options.
Beyond Our Digital Borders
It’s essential to note that third-party services and external websites have their cookie policies and management practices. As you navigate from our website to others, we encourage you to review their policies for a comprehensive understanding of how they use cookies.
Your Journey, Your Rules
Understanding cookies is more than a technical necessity, it’s about ensuring your online spaces feel as personal and secure as possible. As you venture through our website and beyond, remember that your preferences shape the digital experience. Our commitment to your privacy and online experience is unwavering, and we continue to adapt our practices to align with evolving digital landscapes and expectations.
Innovating with Integrity
As digital landscapes evolve, so do our practices around cookies and data management. We’re committed to not just keeping pace with these changes but leading with innovations that respect user privacy and enhance user experience. Our approach to cookies management is designed to provide you with the utmost control over your digital footprint while ensuring our website functionality and content are tailored to meet your needs and preferences.
Enhanced Digital Harmony
Our website use of cookies is not a static practice, it’s a dynamic process aimed at achieving a balance between innovative functionality and personal privacy. We continuously refine our cookies strategy to ensure it aligns with emerging technologies, user expectations, and regulatory frameworks. This ongoing process is our pledge to you—ensuring your digital interactions with us are secure, personalized, and aligned with your preferences.
Fostering a Culture of Privacy
Privacy is not just a policy; it’s a promise—a promise to handle your data with the care it deserves. This promise extends beyond our website to encompass how we interact with third-party vendors and partners. We rigorously assess the privacy practices of our partners, ensuring they meet our high standards of user data protection and transparency.
Empowerment Through Education
We believe informed users are empowered users. That’s why we’re committed to providing you with the resources and knowledge to understand cookies and their role in your digital experience. Beyond managing settings, we encourage you to explore the broader implications of digital privacy and how you can take charge of your online presence.
Engage with Us
Your feedback is the compass that guides our privacy practices. We welcome your thoughts, suggestions, and questions about our Cookies Policy and broader privacy practices. Engaging with our users helps us refine our approach, ensuring it remains responsive to your needs and concerns. Together, we can create a digital environment that respects privacy, champions transparency, and celebrates individuality.