Cookies, Web Beacons, and Other Technologies
Our Services use a variety of online technologies including cookies, web beacons, device fingerprinting, device graph, , and similar technologies. This supplement explains what these technologies are and how we use them. For more information about privacy and advertising on our Services, please visit Advertising, Analytics and Privacy.
Cookies and Other Local Storage
Generally speaking, cookies are text files that are placed in your device's browser, and that can be used to help recognize your browser across different Web pages, websites, and browsing sessions. Cookies are stored on your device or in "local storage."
Oath also uses other types of local storage technologies, such as Local Shared Objects (sometimes called "Flash cookies"), in connection with our services. These technologies are similar to cookies in that they are stored on your device and can be used to maintain information about your activities and preferences. However, these other local storage technologies may use parts of your device other than your browser, which means you may not be able to control their use through the same browser tools and settings you use to control browser cookies. For more information about managing Flash cookies, please visit the Adobe Flash Player website. Your browser's privacy controls may enable you to manage other types of local storage.
We may use cookies or similar technologies in combination with other information we maintain to enhance and personalize your experience on our Services, including:
- to help authenticate you when you use our Services;
- to remember your preferences and registration information;
- to enable a shopping cart;
- to present and help measure and research the effectiveness of our Service, advertisements, and email communications (by determining which Oath emails you open and act upon);
- and to customize the content and advertisements provided to you through our Services.
Web Beacons
Web beacons are small pieces of code placed on Web pages, videos, and in emails that can communicate information about your browser and device to a server. Beacons can be used, among other things, to count the users who visit a Web page or read an email, or to deliver a cookie to the browser of a user viewing a Web page or email.
Device Fingerprinting
Device fingerprinting refers to technologies that use details about your device and browser in order to recognize your device or browser over time. Device fingerprinting can be used for the same purposes as cookies, but does not require files to be stored on your computer (although some parties that use device fingerprinting may also use cookies).
Device Graph
Device graph or "device correlation" involves techniques using device identifiers and other technologies, location information, and other proprietary methods to determine if multiple devices may relate to the same user and to link those devices. This can enable the customization of ads and other functions.