Cookie compliance
What are cookies?
Cookies are small pieces of data that are sent from a website and stored via a website user’s web browser while a user is browsing a website. When the user browses the same website in the future, the data that is stored in the cookie can be retrieved by the website to notify the website of the user’s previous activity. Cookies do a lot of different jobs, such as letting you navigate between pages efficiently, remembering your preferences, and generally improving the user experience. Cookies also help to ensure that advertisements you see online are more relevant to you and your interests. You can find more information about cookies at www.allaboutcookies.org.
Certain pages on our sites may also contain web beacons (also known as internet tags, pixel tags, or clear GIFs). We use web beacons to help display content to visitors and to generate statistics about web traffic and trends. Throughout this policy, we refer to cookies, web beacons, and similar technologies collectively as “cookies.”
Does Cook use cookies on its websites?
Yes, our websites use certain types of cookies. The information we collect through cookies helps us identify visitors who return to our sites and tells us such things as how many users visited our site, the pages that they accessed, and whether they had any technical problems in loading pages or navigating through our sites. By collecting this information, we learn what parts of our sites are the most interesting or valuable to our users, and we can monitor overall interest in our websites. Collecting this information also lets us spot technical problems with our sites so that we can correct them right away. Correcting technical problems, in turn, helps us upgrade our websites and improve our offerings for our visitors.
A list of the cookies we use and the purposes for which we use them is available in the cookie acceptance banner displayed on each of our sites when you first visit and are asked to confirm your cookie preferences.
Am I required to accept cookies to use Cook websites?
No. You may opt out of our use of non-essential cookies by clicking “I Decline Cookies” on our pop-up cookies banner. Furthermore, you can disable the use of cookies by websites generally, including ours, by turning off the cookie function on your browser. However, some portions of our sites may not work properly if you choose to do so.
What are the types of cookies that websites use?
Cookies that are used on websites are commonly divided into four general categories:
Strictly necessary (or essential) cookies
These cookies are essential in order to enable you to move around a website and use its features, such as services you have asked for. Without these cookies, those services would not be available to you. These services include, for example, browsing as a registered user, accessing secure areas of the sites, or making a purchase through the sites. They also include cookies that we must use to honor opt-out preferences, to the extent that those preferences are linked to a specific user’s IP address. Our sites use strictly necessary cookies.
Statistical cookies
These cookies collect information about how visitors use a website, such as the number of visitors that browse the sites or a particular section of the sites, the pages visitors visit most often, and whether visitors get error messages from web pages. The information that we gather through statistical cookies is only used to improve how our sites work, better understand our customers for marketing purposes, and to help us evaluate site usage. We use statistical cookies (for example, Google Analytics) on our sites. We may combine or connect information from statistical cookies with other information about website visitors, but we only use this combined information in accordance with our privacy policy.
Preference cookies
These cookies allow a website to remember choices that you make (such as your user name, your language, or the region you are in) and provide enhanced, more personal features. Providing these features allows you to have a better experience while using a site. We use preference cookies on our sites.
Marketing cookies
These cookies collect information about your browsing habits in order to make advertising relevant to you and your interests. The cookies are also used to limit the number of times you see an advertisement as well as to 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 may be shared with other organizations, such as advertisers, who recognize you as someone who is interested in our products and who are then able to provide you with relevant advertisements about our products when you are on our or other websites. Quite often marketing cookies will be linked to site functionality that is provided by the other organization. We may use and permit marketing cookies and similar technologies noted above on our websites.
How do I consent to the use of cookies?
We will not place any non-essential cookies on your device unless you click “I Accept Cookies” or “Allow Selected Cookies” on sites where that option is available. The cookies we use on our sites and the purposes for which we use them are listed in the cookie acceptance banner displayed on each of our sites when you first visit. If you do not agree to our use of non-essential cookies, you can still browse our sites, but you may not be able to use certain features or enjoy complete functionality.
You can also set your web browser to prevent the use of cookies and/or manually delete cookies through your browser settings. You will have to establish your cookie preferences for each device. You may obtain more information at www.allaboutcookies.org.
If you don’t want information about your visit to our websites sent to Google Analytics, you may download an opt-out browser add-on. Please note that the add-on does not prevent information from being sent to Cook.
Does Cook permit third parties to install cookies or similar web technologies on its websites?
As explained, in addition to the cookies we deliver to your computer or mobile device through our websites, certain third parties may deliver cookies to you for a variety of reasons. For example, we use Google Analytics, a web analytics tool that helps us understand how visitors engage with our websites. Visit the Google Analytics website to learn more. We permit other third parties to set statistical and preference cookies as described in the list of the cookies we use on our sites and the purposes for which we use them, shown in the cookie acceptance banner displayed on each of our sites when you first visit.
We also sometimes permit other third parties (such as advertising networks) to set or use marketing cookies on our websites (as shown in the cookie acceptance banner displayed on each of our sites when you first visit) or engage in behavioral advertising. These allow the delivery of targeted advertisements relating to our products either on our websites or on other websites you visit.
If you would like to opt out of having participating entities collect your online behavior for advertising purposes when you are browsing our websites, click here for a “Website Opt Out.” You will be directed to an industry-developed website that allows you to choose whether each listed entity may collect and use data for interest-based advertising purposes. It may be that some of the third parties that collect interest-based information on our websites do not participate in the Website Opt Out, in which case the best way to avoid third party tracking of your online behaviors may be through your browser settings and deletion of cookies. The Website Opt Out works only on websites. To opt out of having participating entities track your behaviors for advertising purposes when you are using mobile apps, download and use the Digital Advertising Alliance’s “App Choices” app. As with the Website Opt Out, the “Mobile App Opt Out” prevents tracking only by participating entities. Please note that the Website Opt Out and Mobile App Opt Out are device specific. If you wish to opt-out from having interest-based information collected by participating entities across all devices, you need take the steps outlined above from each device.
Other third parties (i.e., other than those parties identified above) may also use cookies, over which we have no control. In addition, on some of our websites, such as our social networking pages, it is possible that individuals have uploaded third-party content, such as videos from YouTube or elsewhere, or embedded content and sharing tools from other third-party sites. Since we do not control the dissemination of cookies by any sites that are not owned or operated by Cook, you should check the relevant third-party websites for more information about these cookies, and whether and how you may opt out of receiving them. Generally speaking, however, you may disable third-party cookies by adjusting your browser settings. Instructions may be found at www.allaboutcookies.org.
Policy revised in January 2023.