COOKIE POLICY
WHAT ARE COOKIES AND WHY DO WE USE THEM?
Cookies are small text files that are placed onto your computer by websites and/or applications that you visit. Cookies are used to help us improve your experience when using our websites – for example, storing your preferred language setting for the next time you visit.
The information we collect from cookies enables us to:
- Tailor our websites to your personal needs
- Remember the notifications that you have been shown, so that you are not shown them again
- Make improvements and updates to our websites based on the way you want to use them
We generally do not use cookies to identify you personally.
WHAT KIND OF COOKIES DO WE USE?
We use the following categories of cookies:
Category 1: necessary cookies
Necessary cookies enable you to use our websites and all their features, such as enabling access to secure areas of the website. Without these cookies you may not be able to use all the features of our websites.
Category 2: performance cookies
Performance cookies collect information about how you use our websites so we can improve them for you in future. For example, they collect information on which pages you visit most often and any error messages you may get. The information collected by these cookies is anonymous. They do not collect any information that can identify you personally.
- Google Analytics (universal): we are using Google Universal Analytics to monitor our website performances and check visitor activities to adapt our content based on their expectations
Category 3: functionality cookies
Functionality cookies enable us to provide you with a more personalized experience. They help us to remember data, such as your username and language preference, to save you having to enter them again the next time you visit. The information these cookies collect is anonymous. They cannot track your browsing activity on other websites.
Category 4: targeting/advertising cookies
We and our service providers may use advertising cookies to deliver ads that we believe are relevant to you and your interests.
For example, we may use targeting or advertising cookies to customize the advertising and content you receive on our websites, to limit the number of times you see the same ad on our websites and to help measure the effectiveness of our advertising campaigns.
- Facebook Pixel: we use Facebook pixel tracking to measure social media campaign efficiency related to the Facebook platform
- Google Adwords (conversion): we use Google Adwords cookies to customize the advertising and content you see for our website, limit the number of ads you see for our website, and measure the effectiveness of our campaign
- Google Adwords (remarketing): we use Google Adwords remarketing cookies to collect data about your activities when you visit our websites, the website of entities who serve our ads (advertisers), or the website and online services where we display ads
Google Adwords cookies may be used to customize the advertising and content you see in our websites. These cookies will be used to provide relevant Ads about our services and are intended to improve the customer experience across SGS Websites. No Personally Identifiable information is stored in any of the platforms mentioned above.
OTHER SIMILAR TECHNOLOGIES
Hanford sites also make use of other tracking technologies including IP addresses, log files and web beacons, which also help us tailor Hanford Sites to your personal needs.
IP addresses
An IP address is a number that is used by computers on the network to identify your computer every time you log on to the Internet. We may record IP Addresses for the following purposes: (i) troubleshoot technical concerns, (ii) maintain website safety and security (iii) better understand how our websites are utilized, and (iv) to better tailor content to your needs depending on the country you are in.
Log Files
We (or a third party on our behalf) may collect information in the form of logs files that record website activity and gather statistics about a user’s browsing habits. These entries are generated anonymously, and help us gather (among other things) (i) a user’s browser type and operating system, (ii) information about a user’s session (such as the URL they came from, the date and time they visited our website, and which pages they've viewed on our website and for how long), and, (iii) other similar navigational or click-stream information (e.g. site traffic reporting and unique visitor counts).
Web Beacons
We may use web beacons (or clear GIFs) on the www.hanford.com.ph sites. Web beacons (also known as “web bugs”) are small strings of code that provide a method of delivering a graphic image on a web page for the purpose of transferring information back to us. We use web beacon information for a variety of purposes, including information as to how a user responds to email campaigns (e.g. the time the email is opened, where the user links to from the email), site traffic reporting, unique visitor counts, advertising and email auditing and reporting, and personalization.
MANAGE YOUR COOKIES/PREFERENCES
You should ensure that your computer setting reflects whether you are happy to accept cookies or not. You can set your browser to warn you before accepting cookies, or you can simply set it to refuse them. You do not need to have cookies on to use or navigate through many parts of Hanford Sites although you may not have access to all the features on Hanford Sites if you do so. See the 'help' button on your browser (e.g. Internet Explorer, Firefox) for how you can do this. Remember that if you use different computers in different locations, you will need to ensure that each browser is adjusted to suit your cookie preferences.
As a web beacon forms part of a webpage, it is not possible to ‘opt-out’ but you can render them ineffective by opting out of the cookies they set.