Cookies

What are cookies?

Cookies are small text files that websites send to your browser when you visit them. They enable the website to record information about your visit, like your preferred language and other settings, making your next visit simpler and more effective. Cookies are important, as without them browsing the web would be much more difficult. Cookies have many purposes. We use them, for example, to store your safe-search settings, to monitor website traffic, to select and set relevant advertising, to make registering for new services easier, and also to protect your data. Cookies cannot be used to identify a visitor to the website. You can restrict or block the use of cookies in your browser settings. If, however, you restrict or block some types of cookie, you will not be able to use some functionality of our website.

What types of cookies and other tools do we use?

We split cookies and other measuring tools into the following categories, depending on their function and purpose:

Essential cookies are cookies that ensure the basic functionality of the website or our online services. These are usually set only in reaction to your activity, which might be a request for a service, or logging on to a secure part of our website. These cookies are essential for the use of our website and services.

Statistical cookies enable us to distinguish and count the number of visitors and to get information about how the website is used (e.g. which pages a user views most often and whether the user gets an error message from any page). This helps us improve the functionality of the website as, for example, we can see whether users are easily finding what they are looking for.

We only use preference cookies with your consent. They enable us to recognise when somebody returns to our website so we can offer them improved and personalised functionality, for example welcoming them by name and remembering their preferences. You can change your preferences regarding advertising and targeting cookies in your browser, as described below, or in the Consent Settings at any time.

We only use marketing cookies with your consent. In such a case we record your visits to our website, other websites you have viewed, and links that you followed. We use this information to serve you with advertising relevant to you and your interests. This information is also used to restrict the number of repeated adverts you see, and to measure the effectiveness of our advertising campaigns. For this purpose we may share this information with third parties (such as advertisers). You can change your preferences in relation to advertising and targeted cookies in your browser, as described below, or in the Consent Settings at any time.

Consent to the storage of cookies

Browsers usually automatically accept cookies unless specially configured. You can change or block the use of cookies at any time in your browser settings.

Here is a list of the most commonly used browsers and information about their settings:

Internet Explorer: windows.microsoft.com
Google Chrome: support.google.com
Mozilla Firefox: support.mozilla.org
Opera: help.opera.com
Safari: support.apple.com
Third-party cookies

We also use services from our partners, who likewise use cookies. These cookies are managed by the third parties and we have no read or write access to these data. They are primarily systems for serving advertising and traffic analysis. We also use Google services like Google Recaptcha and Google Fonts.

You can find the Google LLC privacy policy here
You can find the Google LLC contractual conditions here
Our website contains links to social networks like Facebook, which can also process your personal data, typically your IP address and visited websites, and information about your device and your behaviour through e.g. cookies. In such a case, the processing of your personal data is governed the policies of the operators of these social networks, and these are available on their websites.