Cookie Policy

Last updated: September 2023

Introduction

Thank you for visiting www.kfs.ie (the “Website”). Like most organisations, we use cookies and other technologies on the Website to improve its performance and enhance users’ experiences. This Cookies Policy provides you with information regarding what cookies we may set and how to accept or reject those cookies. 

What are cookies and why are they used?

A cookie is a simple text file that is stored on your computer or mobile device when you visit a website. When you visit a website again, or visit another website which recognises that cookie, your device is able to communicate with the website and the website can read the information held in that cookie. Only that server will be able to retrieve or read the contents of that cookie. Each cookie is unique to your web browser. It will contain some anonymous information such as a unique identifier as well as the website name. Cookies may be set by the website you are visiting (first party cookies) or they may be set by other websites who run content on the page you are viewing (third party cookies).

Cookies have various purposes, including letting you navigate between pages efficiently, storing your preferences, and generally improving your experience of a website. Most websites you visit will use cookies to improve your user experience by enabling that website to remember you, either for the duration of your visit (using session cookies) or for repeat visits (using persistent cookies).                  

What are web beacons and why are they used?

Web beacons are a similar technology to cookies and they can help deliver a better online experience. We also use web beacons to help us display emails in the best format for your device. A web beacon is an electronic image, found on a website or HTML-formatted e-mail (also referred to as a single-pixel or clear GIF). Web beacons collect only limited information such as a cookie number, time and date of a page view and a description of the page on which the web beacon is placed. They are a way of gathering basic statistics and managing cookies, however they do not give away any extra information from your computer. If you disable cookies on your web browser this will also prevent web beacons from tracking your specific activity, however the web beacon may still record an anonymous visit from your internet protocol (IP) address.

How we use cookies on the Website

We use the following cookies on the Website:

• Necessary cookies: These cookies are essential in order to enable you to move around the Website and use its features, such as accessing secure areas of the Website. The Website needs Strictly Necessary cookies for it to work. If you remove or disable these cookies, we cannot guarantee that you will be able to use the Website.

• Analytical /Performance cookies: These cookies provide generic statistics on the use of the Website by allowing us to recognise and count the number of visitors and to see how they move around and access the Website. These cookies collect information such as which pages are most popular, which method of linking between pages is most effective, and if users encounter error messages from web pages. This helps us to improve the way the Website works, for example, by ensuring that users find what they are looking for easily.

• Advertisement: These cookies provide visitors to the Website with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customised ads.

How to manage your cookies preferences

Except for Strictly Necessary cookies and which are essential for the functioning of this Site, you can choose to accept or decline cookies.  You can provide your consent to the use of non-necessary cookies by opting into you acceptance of cookies when you first access our Website. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies if you prefer.  

You can modify your browser setting or manage any other cookie preferences at any time. You can set these preferences on your browser settings. However, each browser is different so check your browser’s Privacy and Help sections to learn how to modify your cookies. If you use more devices and/or browsers you will need to disable cookies on each device and on each browser separately. It may be necessary to refresh the Website on your device for the updated settings to take effect. If you disable non-necessary cookies, you may not be able to continue to take full advantage of the feature on the Website.

Please note that:

• Many of the interactive functions offered by the Website are dependent on cookies and disabling or blocking cookies and web beacons may impact the functionality of the Website or result in an inferior web experience.

• If you have chosen to block third-party cookies on your browser, your cookies preferences won’t carry over from the Website and vice versa.

Changes to this Cookies Policy

We reserve the right to amend this Cookies Policy from time to time to reflect any changes in technology or legislation affecting the way we use cookies. We recommend that you check the Website often, referring to the date of the last modification listed at the top.

Contact us

If you have any questions in relation to this Cookies Policy, please contact us by emailing compliance@kfs.ie.