A ‘cookie’ is a small piece of text that websites send to the browser and that is stored on the user’s terminal (computer or mobile device). These files are intended to store data that can be updated and retrieved by the entity responsible for the installation. Thus, each time the user visits the same website again, the browser retrieves the file and sends it to the website’s server. Cookies have several functions, including collecting information about the user’s preferences and remembering them, and in general, facilitating the use of the website by the user, making the site more useful by personalizing its content. Cookies can be classified based on different parameters:

1. Ownership: own cookies and third-party cookies: depending on which entity manages the domain from which the cookies are sent and the data obtained is processed.
2. Duration: Session cookies and persistent cookies: according to the length of time they remain stored on the user’s terminal.
3. Purpose: in accordance with the purpose for which the data obtained is processed.
   • Technical cookies: are those that allow the user to navigate through the website or application and use the different options or services that exist there. For example, controlling traffic and data communication, identifying the session or accessing restricted access web parts.
   • Preference or customization cookies: These are those that allow the user to remember information so that they can access the service with certain characteristics that can differentiate their experience from that of other users, such as the language, the number of results to be displayed when the user performs a search, the appearance or content of the service depending on the type of browser through which the user accesses the service or the region from which they access the service, etc.
   • Analytics or measurement cookies: They are those that allow the controller to monitor and analyze the behavior of users of the websites to which they are linked, including quantifying the impacts of advertisements. The information collected through this type of cookie is used to measure the activity of the websites, application or platform, to introduce improvements based on the analysis of the usage data made by users of the service.
   • Behavior advertising cookies: They are those that store information on user behavior obtained through the continuous observation of their browsing habits, which allows a specific profile to be developed to show advertising based on this profile.