What are Cookies?
Cookies and other online tracking technologies are small bits of data or code that are used to identify your devices when you use and interact with our website and other services. They are often used for remembering your preferences, to identify popular website or apps pages.
What Cookies do we use and how do we use them?
Essential cookies and similar technologies
These are vital for the running of our services on our website and apps. Without the use of these cookies parts of our website would not function. For example, the use of cookies may help us identify the location and/or authenticity of a client and protect Specialised from misuse, malice or fraud.
Analytics cookies and similar technologies
These collect information about your use of our website and apps, and enable us to improve the way it works. For example, analytics cookies show us which are the most frequently visited pages on the website allowing us to provide the most popular news articles further up the page. They help us record how you interact with our website, such as how you navigate around pages and from page to page; identifying improvements we can make to the visitor’s journey. They also help identify any difficulties you have accessing our services, so we can fix any problems. Additionally, these cookies allow us to see overall patterns of usage at an aggregated level.
Functional/preference cookies and similar technologies
These cookies collect information about your choices and preferences, and allow us to remember things like language, your username (so you can log in faster), text size, and location, so we can show you relevant content to where you are. They allow us to customise the pages, products or services you have accessed.
Tracking, advertising cookies and similar technologies
These types of technologies provide advertisements that are more relevant to visitor’s interests. This can be done by delivering online adverts based on their previous web browsing activity, known as “online behavioural advertising” (OBA). Cookies are placed on their browser, which will remember the websites they have visited. Advertising based on what they have been looking at is then displayed to them when they visit websites who use the same advertising networks. Specialised does not use such technology.
Web beacons
These are bits of data that count the number of users who access a website or webpage and can also allow us to see if a cookie has been activated. Web beacons used on web pages or in emails allow us to see how successful an article has been or that an email message was successfully delivered and read in a marketing campaign or newsletter. Web beacons are also used to verify any clicks through to links or advertisements contained in emails. We may use this information to help us identify which emails are more interesting to you and to inform advertisers how many customers have clicked on their adverts (this information is aggregated and does not identify you individually).
Flash cookies
We may, in certain situations, use Adobe Flash Player to deliver special content, such as video clips or animation. To improve your user experience, Local Shared Objects (commonly known as Flash cookies) are used to provide functions such as remembering your settings and preferences. Flash cookies are stored on your device, but they are managed through an interface different from the one provided by your web browser.
Tracking URLs
Tracking URLs are a special web link that allows us to measure when a link is clicked on. They are used to help us measure the effectiveness of campaigns and advertising and the popularity of articles that are read.
We also use cookies and similar technologies:
When you access and interact with our services cookies may collect certain information about those visits. For example, in order to permit your connection to our website, our servers receive and record information about your computer, device, and browser, including potentially your IP address, browser type, other software or hardware information, and your geographic location.
If you access our services from a mobile device
We may collect a unique device identifier assigned to that device, geo-location data, and other transactional information for that device.
Usage of services
To collect, use and store information about your usage of our services, website and apps, such as pages you have visited, content you have viewed, search queries you have run, and advertisements you have seen or interacted with.
To provide relevant content
The content on our website and in our communications with you may be adjusted depending on what we know about the content, products and services that you like. This means we can highlight content and articles that we believe will be of interest to you. We provide personalisation by using cookies, IP addresses, web beacons, URL tracking and mobile app settings.
Third party advertisers
We may sell space on our website to advertisers. The adverts they display on our website will often contain cookies. Our advertisers may use cookies or similar technologies to provide you with advertisements that they believe are relevant. They may use browsing data obtained to restrict the number of times you see particular adverts (frequency capping). You may also see adverts from these advertisers on other websites you visit.
Third parties that support our services by serving advertisements or providing other services, such as allowing you to share content or tracking aggregate service usage, may also use cookies and other technologies to collect information relevant to the provision of those services.
We do not control third party cookies or other technologies. Their use is governed by the privacy policies of third parties using such technologies. You should make sure you are aware of how third parties will use cookies by checking the third party’s cookie policy.
Mobile applications
By downloading our apps, we will require access to the following services on your device: unique identifier (UDID), MAC address or other applicable device identifier and location. Other services may also be required in order for the apps to function. We may use this information to validate free trials. Our apps may also provide push notifications to your device. You may control these through using the tools on your device, such as turning off push notification and location services.
Managing cookies
Most modern browsers are set to accept cookies by default, but you can change your settings to notify you when a cookie is being set or updated, or to block cookies altogether. Please consult the “Help” section of your browser.
Controlling OBA cookies
The “Your Online Choices” website provides more information about controlling cookies. It also provides an easy way to opt out of behavioural advertising from each (or all) of the networks represented by the European Interactive Digital Advertising Alliance.
Controlling Flash cookies
You can manage the use of Flash technologies with the Flash management tools available at Adobe’s website.
Controlling web beacons
You can prevent web beacons from tracking your activity, although you won’t be able to decline receiving them in emails.
Please note that by blocking any or all cookies you may not have access to certain features, content, or personalisation available on our website, or apps.
Data Retention Policy
Specialised is cognisant of the Storage Limitation Period (Article 5, GDPR) and operates a 6-year retention period for all archived case records. In circumstances where an instruction relates to a personal injury claim, and the instructing customer informs the company of settlement, all case material will be immediately securely destroyed, and the electronic records deleted.
In cases involving fraud or other criminal activity, the 6-year retention period may be extended as permitted by Article 5 (1) (e).