The App only stores the basics – cookies to help you find the information you need and tracking tags to understand how you use the App (and how we can make it better!)
What is a cookie?
Website cookies are text files containing small amounts of data that are created when you arrive on a web page and are stored in your Internet browser automatically. Cookies are used to tailor the experience of using a specific website to a certain user. This information is encrypted, so only the website and your web browser can access it.
When you land on a web page, the law requires websites that use cookies to ask your permission to collect them. These are usually written when a new web page is opened after you've submitted information. They allow the website to 'remember' what information you've entered on a previous page – most websites require the use of cookies, as many basic functions won't work if you decide not to accept them.
Cookies can track which pages you visited while on a site, the IP address and general location of your device, and sometimes login information. This is why some websites will reference where you live, remember your login details from your previous visit, or may suggest returning to a page you've viewed in the past.
It's likely that you have encountered a cookie policy before – you'll often be prompted by a pop-up window to agree or disagree with a cookie policy upon your first visit to a website – but what exactly are they?
All websites that use cookies must disclose a cookie policy due to a piece of EU legislation that came into force in 2011 to help users better protect their online data. It's illegal for websites to not create or disclose a cookie policy. The law applies to any website that is used by people in the EU, so even if a website is hosted outside of the EU (in the US, for example), if it could potentially serve customers in the EU, it must adhere to cookie legislation.