What are cookies, web beacons, and similar technologies?
Like most sites, we use technologies that are essentially small data files placed on your computer, tablet, mobile phone, or other devices (referred to collectively as a “device”) that allow us to record certain pieces of information whenever you visit or interact with our sites, services, applications, messaging, and tools, and to recognise you across devices.
The specific names and types of the cookies, web beacons, unique identifiers and similar technologies we use to collect information (e.g. about the pages you view, the links you click, and other actions you take on our Services, within our advertising or email content) may change from time to time. In order to help you better understand this Policy and our use of such technologies we have provided the following limited terminology and definitions:
Cookies – Small text files (typically made up of letters and numbers) placed in the memory of your browser or device when you visit a website or view a message. Cookies allow a website to recognise a particular device or browser. There are several types of cookies:
Session cookies expire at the end of your browser session and allow us to link your actions during that particular browser session.
Persistent cookies are stored on your device in between browser sessions, allowing us to remember your preferences or actions across multiple sites.
First-party cookies are set by the site you are visiting.
Third-party cookies are set by a third party site separate from the site you are visiting.
Cookies can be disabled or removed by tools that are available in most commercial browsers. The preferences for each browser you use will need to be set separately and different browsers offer different functionality and options.
Web beacons – Small graphic images (also known as “pixel tags” or “clear GIFs”) that may be included on our sites, services, applications, messaging, and tools, that typically work in conjunction with cookies to identify our users and user behavior.
Similar technologies – Technologies that store information in your browser or device utilising local shared objects or local storage, such as flash cookies, HTML 5 cookies, and other web application software methods. These technologies can operate across all of your browsers, and in some instances may not be fully managed by your browser and may require management directly through your installed applications or device. We do not use these technologies for storing information to target advertising to you on or off our sites.
We may use the terms “cookies” or “similar technologies” interchangeably in our policies to refer to all technologies that we may use to store data in your browser or device or that collect information or help us identify you in the manner described above.
Your choice and our use of cookies, web beacons, and similar technologies
We offer certain site features, services, applications, and tools that are available only through the use of these technologies. You’re always free to block, delete, or disable these technologies if your browser, installed application, or device so permits. However, if you decline cookies or other similar technologies, you may not be able to take advantage of certain site features, services, applications, or tools. You may also be required to re-enter your password more frequently during your browsing session. For more information on how you can block, delete, or disable these technologies, please review your browser or device settings.
Generally, these technologies allow our sites, services, applications, and tools to store relevant information in your browser or device and later read that information in order to identify you to our servers or internal systems. Where applicable, we protect our cookies and other similar technologies to help ensure that only we and/or our authorised service providers can interpret them by assigning them a unique identifier that is designed for interpretation only by us. We don’t store any of your personal information on any of our cookies or other similar technologies.
Any personal information that we collect and store through use of these technologies is first obtained through notice and consent: We obtain your consent by providing you with transparent notice of use of the technologies and, to the extent described herein, providing you with the opportunity to make a choice to disable these technologies.
Our uses of such technologies fall into the following general categories:
Operationally Necessary. We may use cookies, web beacons, or other similar technologies that are necessary to the operation of our sites, services, applications, and tools. This includes technologies that allow you access to our sites, services, applications, and tools, that are required to identify irregular site behaviour, prevent fraudulent activity and improve security, or that allow you to make use of our functions such as shopping carts, saved search, or similar functions;
Performance-Related. We may use cookies, web beacons, or other similar technologies to assess the performance of our websites, applications, services, and tools, including as part of our analytic practices to help us understand how our visitors use our websites, determine if you have interacted with our messaging, determine whether you have viewed an item or link, or to improve our website content, applications, services, or tools;
Functionality-Related. We may use cookies, web beacons, or other similar technologies that allow us to offer you enhanced functionality when accessing or using our sites, services, applications, or tools. This may include identifying you when you sign into our sites or keeping track of your specified preferences, interests, or past items viewed so that we may enhance the presentation of content on our sites;