This Cookie Statement applies to this website and other online services which it covers.
What is a cookie?
A cookie is a small text file that is stored by the browser on your computer or mobile device. The cookie can be read by the company that placed it there so that the browser in use on that device can be recognized. Cookies may provide “aggregate data”, that is, data that counts how many visitors engage in certain actions. They can be read as unique but not identify you as an individual or, particularly in case of registration cookies, cookies can be associated with data that does identify you.
What cookies are used by HCL’s websites?
Strictly Necessary Cookies
Strictly necessary cookies are those which are essential for our sites to work in the way you have requested. Although many of our sites are open, that is, do not require registration, we may use strictly necessary cookies to control access to some of our community sites, whitepapers or online events such as webinars and to maintain your session during a single visit. These cookies will need to reset on your browser each time you register or log in to a gated area. If you block these cookies entirely, you may not be able to access gated areas. We may also offer you the choice of a persistent cookie to recognize you as you return to one of our gated sites. If you choose not to use this “remember me” function, you will simply need to log in each time you return.
Performance Cookies
Performance cookies, often called analytics cookies, collect data from visitors to our sites on a unique but anonymous basis. The results are reported to us as aggregate numbers and trends. HCL allows third parties to set performance cookies. We rely on the reports to understand our audiences generally and improve how our websites work.
We use Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google, Inc. (“Google”), which in turn uses performance cookies. The information generated by the cookies about your use of our website will be transmitted to and stored by Google on servers in the United States. In case IP-anonymisation is activated on our website, your IP address will be truncated within the area of the European Economic Area. Only in exceptional cases will the whole IP address be first transferred to a Google server in the United States and truncated there. On our websites the IP address is encoded (i.e. anonymised) before being sent to Google servers.
Google will use this information on behalf of the operator of our website to (a) evaluate your use of our website; (b) compile reports on website activity for website operators; and (c) provide website operators with other services relating to website activity and internet usage. The IP address that your browser conveys within the scope of Google Analytics will not be associated with any other data held by Google. You may refuse the use of cookies by selecting the appropriate settings on your browser. However, please note that if you do this you may not be able to use the full functionality of our website. You can also opt-out from being tracked by Google Analytics by downloading and installing Google Analytics’ Opt-out Browser Add-On for your current web browser: http://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=en.
Functionality Cookies
We may use site performance cookies to remember your preferences for operational settings on our websites so that you do not have to re-set the preferences every time you visit. For example, the cookie may recognize optimum video streaming speeds or volume settings, or the order in which you look at comments to a posting on one of our forums. These cookies do not identify you as an individual and we don’t associate the resulting information with a cookie that does.
Social Media Cookies
If you use social media or other third-party credentials to log in to our sites, that third party organization may set a cookie that allows that organization to recognize you. The third-party organization may use that cookie for its own purposes. The organization may also show you ads and content from us when you visit its websites or use its applications.
Also, if you use a social media-sharing button or widget on one of our sites, the social network that created the button will record your action for its own purposes.
Please look to each social media organization’s privacy and data protection policy to understand (a) its use of cookies; (b) how it tracks you from our sites; and (c) how to control such cookies and buttons.
Targeting/Advertising Cookies
We use tracking and targeting cookies or ask other companies to do so on our behalf to send you emails and show you online advertising that meets your business and professional interests. If you have registered for our websites or submitted information through an online form on one of our websites, we may tailor our emails to you to reflect the interests you have shown during your visits.
We ask third party advertising platforms and technology companies to show you our ads after you leave our sites. This is known as ‘retargeting technology’. This technology allows us to make our website services more interesting for you. Retargeting cookies are used to record anonymized movement patterns on a website. These patterns are used to tailor banner advertisements to your interests. The data used for retargeting is completely anonymous and is only used for statistical analysis. No personal data is stored, and the use of retargeting technology is subject to the applicable statutory data protection regulations.
We also work with companies to reach people who have not visited our sites. These companies do not identify you as an individual but instead rely on a variety of other data to show you advertisements, for example, behavior across websites, information about individual devices and, in some cases, IP addresses.
Third Party Websites' Cookies
Third party cookies are cookies set by someone other than the website owner for purposes such as collecting information on user behavior, demographics, or personalized marketing. When using our website, you may encounter embedded content, such as YouTube videos. These websites and embedded content may use their own cookies. We do not have control over the placement of cookies by other websites, even if you are directed to them from our website.
How do I turn off cookies?
Using Consent Tool
You have the option of consenting to our use of cookies prior to browsing our websites. You can manage your cookies choices by clicking on the "Cookie Preferences" button and by selecting or rejecting each category of cookies (except Strictly Necessary Cookies). You can also explore the details of various cookies under each cookie category by accessing the “Cookie Details” link within the Cookie Preference Center.
The tool will record when you have consented to our cookie statement and will ask for consent again annually to ensure users stay up-to-date with changes to our cookie and privacy policies.
Please note that Strictly Necessary Cookies cannot be disabled, nor can the tool be used to block cookies on third-party websites linked from our website. Also, disabling a cookie or category of cookies does not delete the disabled cookie from your browser unless manually completed through your browser function.
Using your browser to control cookies
All modern browsers allow you to view, manage, delete, and turn off cookies or stop accepting cookies. You can usually find the settings to do so in the "options" or "preferences" menu of the browser on your device or you can use the "Help" option for more details. Please be aware that turning off some cookies may result in our sites not working as intended.
Guidance on how to control cookies for common browsers is linked below.
Cookies that have been set in the past
If cookies are disabled/deleted, the information collected prior to the preference change may still be used, however, we will stop using the disabled cookie to collect any further information from your user experience.
Additional resources for turning-off cookies
If you are primarily concerned with third party advertising platforms, including those that track your browser across unrelated websites, please visit the Network Advertising Initiative at https://www.networkadvertising.org/, for more information and options for turning off targeting, http://www.networkadvertising.org/choices/. The Digital Advertising Alliance also offers an opt-out page at http://www.aboutads.info/choices/. Users based in the European Union can opt-out of targeted advertising through the European Interactive Digital Advertising Alliance’s opt-out page at http://www.youronlinechoices.eu.