COOKIE POLICY

What is a “cookie”?
What are the advantages of cookies?
Why do we use cookies?
How are cookies used by this website?
What type of information is stored and accessed through cookies?
Why are cookies important for the Internet?
Security and privacy issues
How can I stop cookies?

The safety of your data is our top priority, which is why we take every aspect of your data protection seriously. Starting with 25 May 2018, Regulation (EU) 2016/679 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation), also known as GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation), entered into force. This means that any operator that processes personal data must apply these requirements and provide, in a transparent manner, information regarding the way the data is processed. Given the need to comply with the GDPR provisions, as well as the fact that we are dedicated to taking care of your personal data (which may include first name, last name, e-mail address, etc., depending on the purpose of the processing) found in our database, we inform you that this data is used only for the purpose of successfully carrying out the processes conducted in the relationship with you (a few processes we mention without being limited to these: exam registration, communication of results, maintaining relationships with candidates). To improve your online browsing experience, we use cookies that facilitate the use of the website eecentre.eu by visitors. The complete list of cookies can be consulted below.

1. What is a “cookie”

An “Internet Cookie” (also known as a “browser cookie” or “HTTP cookie” or simply “cookie”) is a small file, made up of letters and numbers, which is stored on the computer, mobile terminal, or other equipment of a user from which the Internet is accessed. The cookie is installed by the request issued by a web server to a browser (e.g. Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge) and is completely “passive” (does not contain software programs, viruses, or spyware and cannot access the information on the user’s hard drive). A cookie consists of two parts: the name and the content or value of the cookie. Moreover, the lifespan of a cookie is determined; technically, only the server that sent the cookie can access it again when a user returns to the website associated with the web server. Cookies play an important role in facilitating access and delivery of the multiple services that the user enjoys on the Internet, such as:

Personalisation of certain settings such as: the language in which a site is viewed, the currency in which certain prices or fees are expressed, keeping options for various products (quantity, other details, etc.);
Cookies provide site owners with valuable feedback on how their sites are used by users, so that they can make them more efficient and more accessible to users;
They allow multimedia or other types of applications from other sites to be included on a specific site to create a more valuable, useful, and pleasant browsing experience.

Cookies themselves do not require personal information in order to be used and, in most cases, do not personally identify internet users. There are two main categories of cookies:

Session cookies — these are temporarily stored in the cookie folder of the web browser so that the browser remembers them until the user exits the respective website or closes the browser window.
Persistent cookies — these are stored on the hard drive of a computer or equipment (and, in general, depend on the preset lifespan of the cookie). Persistent cookies also include those placed by a website other than the one the user is visiting at the time — known as “third party cookies” — which can be used anonymously to remember a user’s interests, so that advertising as relevant as possible is delivered to users.

2. What are the advantages of cookies?

Cookies are managed by web servers. The lifespan of a cookie can vary significantly, depending on the purpose for which it is placed. Some cookies are used exclusively for a single session (session cookies) and are no longer retained once the user has left the website, while some cookies are retained and reused each time the user returns to that website (“permanent cookies”). However, cookies can be deleted by a user at any time through the browser settings. In general, the role of cookies is to ensure a quick and easy interaction between users and websites. Cookies are also used so that users can easily resume their activities on subsequent visits to a previously visited website. Basically, cookies tell the server which pages should be displayed to the user, without the user having to remember the pages they have navigated or having to navigate the entire site from the beginning.

3. Why do we use cookies?

To recognise new visitors on the eecentre.eu website.
To recognise past visitors.
To remember your consent preferences regarding the use of cookies.
To improve the technical performance of the site through the cache system.
To correctly attribute the source of visits and to understand which marketing channels bring visitors interested in our examination services.
To better understand the interests of our candidates and visitors of the eecentre.eu website.

4. How are cookies used on this website?

Essential (necessary) cookies

These cookies are strictly necessary for the correct functioning of the website. Without them, certain functionalities cannot be provided. They do not require user consent.

_lscache_vary

Source: local (LiteSpeed Cache)
Persistence: session duration
Role: used by the LiteSpeed Cache plugin to determine which version of the page to deliver to the user (e.g. authenticated user vs. visitor).

Preference / consent cookies

Technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing the consent preferences expressed by the user in relation to the use of cookies.

cmplz_banner-status

Source: local (Complianz)
Persistence: 1 year
Role: stores the status of the cookie banner (whether it was rejected or accepted).

cmplz_consented_services

Source: local (Complianz)
Persistence: 1 year
Role: stores the user’s consent preferences for various services.

cmplz_functional

Source: local (Complianz)
Persistence: 1 year
Role: stores the user’s consent for the use of functional cookies.

cmplz_policy_id

Source: local (Complianz)
Persistence: 1 year
Role: stores the identifier of the cookie policy version accepted by the user, so that consent can be requested again if the policy is updated.

cmplz_preferences

Source: local (Complianz)
Persistence: 1 year
Role: stores the user’s consent for the use of preference cookies.

cmplz_statistics

Source: local (Complianz)
Persistence: 1 year
Role: stores the user’s consent for the use of statistical cookies.

cmplz_marketing

Source: local (Complianz)
Persistence: 1 year
Role: stores the user’s consent for the use of marketing cookies.

Statistical cookies

Technical storage or access is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Information stored or retrieved solely for this purpose, without additional data from the internet service provider or from a third party, cannot usually be used to identify you.

_ga

Source: Google Analytics
Persistence: 2 years
Role: used to distinguish unique users by assigning a randomly generated identifier.

_ga_XXXXXXXXXX

Source: Google Analytics
Persistence: 2 years
Role: used by Google Analytics 4 to persist the session state for the GA4 property of the website.

Cookies on the registration platform

The registration for Cambridge and IELTS examinations is carried out on our external platform registrations.eecentre.eu. This subdomain, operated by EUROPEAN EXAMINATIONS CENTRE SRL, may set its own technical and analytical cookies necessary for the operation of the registration process. These cookies are governed by the same policy and pursue similar purposes to those described above (technical operation, statistical analysis, retention of consent preferences).

5. What type of information is stored and accessed through cookies

Cookies keep information in a small text file that allows a website to recognise a browser. The web server will recognise the browser until the cookie expires or is deleted. The cookie stores important information that improves the browsing experience on the Internet (for example: user session ID, referral page, current time, etc.).

6. Why are cookies important for the Internet?

Cookies are the central point of the efficient operation of the Internet, helping to generate a friendly browsing experience adapted to the preferences and interests of each user. Refusing or disabling cookies may make some sites impossible to use. Refusing or disabling cookies does not mean that you will no longer receive online advertising — but only that it will no longer be able to take into account your preferences and interests, highlighted by browsing behaviour. Examples of important uses of cookies (which do not require user authentication through an account):

Content and services adapted to user preferences;
Offers adapted to user interests — language preferences (for example, displaying search results in English);
Retention of child protection filters regarding content on the Internet (family mode options, safe search functions);
Measurement, optimisation, and analytics features — such as confirming a certain level of traffic on a website, what type of content is viewed, and how a user arrives on a website (for example: through search engines, directly, from other websites, etc.). Websites carry out these analyses of their use in order to improve the sites for the benefit of users.

7. Security and privacy issues

Cookies are NOT viruses! They use “plain text” formats. They are not made up of pieces of code, so they cannot be executed and cannot self-run. Consequently, they cannot be duplicated or replicated on other networks in order to run or replicate again. Because they cannot fulfil these functions, they cannot be considered viruses. However, cookies can be used for negative purposes. Many anti-spyware products are aware of this fact and constantly mark cookies to be deleted as part of anti-virus/anti-spyware deletion/scanning procedures. In general, browsers have integrated privacy settings that provide different levels of cookie acceptance, validity period, and automatic deletion after the user has visited a certain site. Consult the Privacy Policy. To improve the user experience we use the following technologies:

Google Analytics

We use Google Analytics to collect information about how visitors use our site. For example, we collect details such as the source of the visit and the total number of visitors on our site. This allows us to determine the effectiveness of our promotional campaigns and user activity on the site. You can find more details about the Google Analytics privacy policy here: https://support.google.com.

8. How can I stop cookies?

Disabling and refusing to receive cookies may make certain sites impractical or difficult to visit and use. Also, refusing to accept cookies does not mean that you will no longer receive/see online advertising. It is possible to set the browser so that these cookies are no longer accepted or you can set the browser to accept cookies from a specific site. Some browsers have the “Do Not Track” function that allows users not to be tracked while browsing. Blocking cookies or using the “Do Not Track” mode may block certain functionalities on our sites. All modern browsers offer the possibility to change cookie settings. These settings are usually found in the “options” or “preferences” menu of the browser. To understand these settings, the following links may be useful; otherwise you can use the “help” option of the browser for more details.