What are cookies?

Cookies are files stored on your own computer but created by the website that you have visited and used to track and control your use of that website. 

For example, cookies may store information about your location, address details, usernames and can store information used by analytics systems such as Google Analytics.

Most e-commerce websites and many company websites will store cookies – some more than others – and they do this usually to either make your visit to the website more user friendly (such as pre-filling contact information during checkout) or to understand how your’re using the website (in the case of Google Analytics).

What is the cookie law?

The cookie law was originally a piece of EU legislation adopted in 2011 that controls how companies collect and manage the data it collects on website visitors.

Since 2018, the U.K and other E.U nations have been bound by the General Data Protections Regulations (GDPR) which requires all businesses to have more control over personal data, including the cookies stored and used by your website as this is personal information of your customers.

Any company collecting and using personal data must ensure that it is:

• used fairly, lawfully and in a transparent manner;
• collected for specified, explicit and legitimate purposes;
• adequate, relevant and its collection limited to what is necessary;
• accurate and kept up to date;
• kept in a form that enables identification of data subjects for no longer than is necessary;
• handled according to the data protection rights of individuals;
• kept secure and not transferred outside the European Economic Area (EEA) without adequate protection.