What is a cookie?

A cookie is a small piece of data sent by a website's server to your computer or mobile device and stored in your browser (e.g. Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, Safari). It consists of anonymous information, including a unique user identifier. When you revisit a site or navigate between pages, this data is passed from your browser to the site's server. With this data, the website is able to 'remember' your browser, enabling it to retrieve your user preferences, to personalise your visits and to simplify any sign-in procedures.

Cookies are intended to improve your user experience by making it easier and faster to navigate through a website. For example, some websites require that you log in to gain access. If such sites did not use cookies, then you would be required to enter your login details every time you navigated to a new page because the website would not be able to remember that you had already logged in.

Many websites also use cookies for advertising purposes. For example, certain cookies allow a website to determine if you've already seen a particular ad and therefore it may not display that ad on subsequent pages that you visit.

All of the information a cookie collects can only be retrieved by the website server that sent the cookie to your browser.

Cookies on irishtimes.com

We use the following Cookies on sections of ipassembly.com/ipassembly.org site and the mobile applications:

Strictly necessary cookies. These are cookies that are required for the operation of our website. They include, for example, cookies that enable you to log into secure areas of our website, use a shopping cart or make use of e-billing services.

Analytical/performance cookies. They are set by ipassembly.com/ipassembly.org and third parties, including Google Analytics. Performance cookies allow us to collect statistical information about our visitors, such as whether they have visited the site before and the pages they view. This information is gathered anonymously - it does NOT enable us to identify who you are. We use these cookies to determine the kind of content and services our visitors value most, which in turn helps us improve our website and its content.

We use first-party cookies and third-party cookie to understand who our users are in order to create a better experience for them while visiting our website.

Controlling cookies

Cookies are meant to improve the user experience, but some users prefer to set restrictions on the types of cookies that can be stored on their computer or mobile phone.

By modifying your browser preferences, you have the choice to accept all cookies, to be notified when a cookie is set or to reject all cookies.

It is important to note that you will lose some functions of a website if you choose to restrict or disable its cookies.

From time to time, we may send a "cookie" to your computer. A cookie is a small piece of data that is sent to your browser from a Web server and stored on your computer's hard drive. A cookie can't read data off your hard drive or read cookie files created by other sites. Cookies do not damage your system. We use cookies to recognize you when you return to our Web site, or to identify which areas of our network of Web sites you have visited (i.e. e-commerce sites, etc.). We may use this information to better personalize the content you see on our sites. Many Web sites place cookies on your hard drive. You can choose whether to accept cookies by changing the settings of your browser. Your browser can refuse all cookies, or show you when a cookie is being sent. If you choose not to accept these cookies, your experience at our site and other Web sites may be diminished and some features may not work as intended.