Cookie Policy

Cookies are small text files that are sent to your computer and stored there when you visit certain websites. They can perform a number of different functions and usually help make a website easier and more enjoyable to use. A cookie typically contains some sort of unique identifier along with some other information. Only the website that created the cookie can read this information.

Some common functions that require the use of cookies include:

• Online shopping baskets: A cookie is used to remember what's in your basket as you browse an online store.
• Logins: When you login to a website using a user name and password, a cookie is required to keep you logged in. Otherwise you would be logged out every time you visit a new page within the site.
• Targeted advertising: Some web advertisers use cookies to remember details related to your browsing habits, previous purchases or location. This allows them to target you with adverts which they believe might interest you.
• Analytics: Many websites use cookies to monitor how you interact with the site itself. By analysing this, improvements can be made to the site's usability.

Although they are generally harmless, some people prefer not to allow a website to send cookies to their computer. All browsers have the option to block all cookies. However, this might mean that certain features on a website will stop functioning, or that the website will only work in a very limited way. This is why your web browser will also allow you to pick and choose which sites to accept cookies from. To find out how to do this, you can consult your web browser's Help menu.

It is also possible to delete cookies that are already on your computer. If you do this and then return to a website which you previously visited or logged into, you will notice that the website has “forgotten" you and will act as though you have never visited it before.

There are several different types of cookie which you should be aware of:

• First party cookies: These are sent by the website you are currently visiting and can only be read by that website.
• Third party cookies: Some websites use content or features from separate organizations. A typical example might be adverts running on the side of a website which are supplied by a specialist online advertiser, or a video embedded from a service such as YouTube. Third party content such as this has the ability to send a cookie to your computer. In the case of adverts, this cookie might be used to provide personalized or targeted content based on your browsing habits.
• Session cookies: These are usually a type of first party cookie. They are only stored on your computer temporarily and are deleted once you close the browser (or a short time afterwards).
• Persistent cookies: These are stored for a fixed period of time. They are used when a site needs to remember things for longer than just a single browsing session. Many online stores use a persistent cookie to remember what's in your shopping cart, or what items you previously viewed. That way, when you return to the site a few days later, everything is still as you left it.
• Flash cookies: Flash is a piece of software used to display games and videos on websites. It has the ability to send cookies to your computer. Unlike other types of cookie, Flash cookies cannot be blocked by your browser. Instead, you can control these cookies by using the Flash Player's Local Settings Manager, which should be accessible in your Windows Control Panel under System and Security, or under your Mac System Preferences.

The following table lists the cookies used by FireproofFilingCabinets.co.uk, what organization sets them, and their functions: