Cookies
Updated: Jan 2020
Our use of cookies
Cookies are small files placed on your computer by websites that you visit. We use them to:
- remember settings you've saved
- measure website usage
Types of cookies:
- necessary: required for the operation of the website
- functional: personalises the content and remembers your preferences
- analytical performance: counts the number of visitors and how visitors move around the website (does not collect personal information)
- social sharing: makes it easy for you to share content to social media channels
- marketing: helps us improve the relevancy of the advertising campaigns you receive
Third party websites: please be aware that if you access third party websites including social media platforms from this website you will be subject to their terms and conditions.
Cookies used across our websites
Necessary
| Name | Purpose | Expiration |
|---|---|---|
| HASQA | Ensures delivery of this website, by distributing workload across multiple computing resources. | Session |
| HAAPPLB | Ensures delivery of the FFORA website, by distributing workload across multiple computing resources. | Session |
Functional
| Name | Purpose | Expiration |
|---|---|---|
| civicCookieControl | Used to track consent, and allows anonymised users to control how cookies are set when using this site. | Three months |
| NID | Used for the Postcode Finder service. | Six months |
| _gali | Set when you opt to listen to a particular page. | One minute |
| ipe_s, ipe.pageViewedCount | Relates to the iPerceptions survey that appears on sqa.org.uk and set only after participation in the survey. | Session |
| ipe_s | Relates to the iPerceptions survey that appears on sqa.org.uk and set only after participation in the survey. | Three months |
| ajax_search_cookie | Holds the search string used when filtering jobs in recruitment portal. | End of session |
| ccp_user5152, lastaccesstime5152, sessionid5152 | Identifies logged in user in recruitment portal. Holds timestamp for when a page is called from the server. Holds session ID. | End of session |
| cookieip | Holds the assumed IP address of the client. | Session |
| choosecountryregion | Holds country/region chosen. | Six months |
| choosecountryregionurl | Holds URL for specific region page used on sqa.org.uk. | Six months |
| requestFromOutsideGB | Holds a flag indicating if a user is assumed to be outside GB. | Session |
| JSESSIONID | Used to track sessions on sqa.org.uk and the past papers application. | Session |
| PREF | Set after performing a search through the sqa.org.uk website. | Session |
| style | Holds accessibility settings. | One year |
| TEXT_SIZE | Holds text size to be used. | - |
| iama | Indicates the selected user type from the 'I am a…' menu. | One year |
| YSC | Relates to the user's YouTube preferences. | Session |
| VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE | Relates to the user's YouTube preferences. | Eight months |
Analytical performance
Google Analytics
These cookies are used to monitor website traffic, search queries and visits to this website. User data is anonymised.
| Name | Purpose | Expiration |
|---|---|---|
| _gid | Used to distinguish users. | 24 hours |
| _utmb | Used to determine new sessions/visits. Updated every time data is sent to Google Analytics. | 30 minutes |
| _utmc | Session | |
| _utmt | Used to throttle request rate. | 10 minutes |
| _gat | Used to throttle request rate. | 10 minutes |
| _utmz | Stores the traffic source or campaign that explains how the user reached the site. Updated every time data is sent to Google Analytics. | Six months |
| _ga | Used to distinguish users and sessions. | Two years |
| _utma | Used to distinguish users and sessions. Updated every time data is sent to Google Analytics. | Two years |
HotJar
These cookies are used to record information on how visitors are interacting with the website. User data is anonymised.
| Name | Purpose | Expiration |
|---|---|---|
| _hjClosedSurveyInvites | Set once a visitor interacts with a Survey invitation modal popup. Ensures that the same invite does not re-appear if it has already been shown. | One year |
| _hjDonePolls | Set once a visitor completes a poll using the Feedback Poll widget. Ensures that the same poll does not re-appear if it has already been filled in. | One year |
| _hjMinimizedPolls | Set once a visitor minimizes a Feedback Poll widget. Ensures that the widget stays minimizes when the visitor navigates through the site. | One year |
| _hjDoneTestersWidgets | Set once a visitor submits their information in the Recruit User Testers widget. Ensures that the same form does not re-appear if it has already been filled in. | One year |
| _hjMinimizedTestersWidgets | Set once a visitor minimizes a Recruit User Testers widget. Ensures that the widget stays minimizes when the visitor navigates through the site. | One year |
| _hjIncludedInSample | Set to let Hotjar know whether a visitor is included in the sample which is used to generate funnels. | One year |
Optimizely
These cookies are used to identify a visitor's browser and track website usage while on this website.
| Name | Purpose | Expiration |
|---|---|---|
| optimizelyBuckets | Records the Optimizely Classic variation that the visitor has seen for each experiment. | 10 years |
| optimizelyEndUserId | Stores a visitor's unique Optimizely identifier, for both Optimizely Classic and Optimizely X Web. It's a combination of a timestamp and random number. No other information about you is stored. | 10 years |
| optimizelySegments | Allows persistence of segment membership, which improves the accuracy of segmented results. | 10 years |
| optimizelyPendingLogEvents | Ensures that all events are efficiently tracked even if a visitor takes many actions in rapid succession. The cookie is wiped once the tracking call has been made. | 15 seconds |
| optimizelyRedirect | Stores variation ID of redirect experiment, so that Optimizely can pass it into integrated technology platforms along with the variation IDs that are active on the new page. This is necessary because the redirect experiment is usually inactive on the new page. | Five seconds |
| optimizelyReferrer | After execution of a redirect experiment, stores the document.referrer property from the original page, so that Optimizely can pass it into integrated technology platforms. Avoids creating "self-referrals" in third-party analytics. | Five seconds |
Matomo
These cookies are used to monitor website traffic, search queries and visits to this website.
| Name | Purpose | Expiration |
|---|---|---|
| _pk_ref | Used to store the attribution information, the referrer initially used to visit the website. | 6 months |
| _pk_id | Used to store a few details about the user such as the unique visitor ID. | 13 months |
| _pk_ses, _pk_cvar, _pk_hsr | Short lived cookies used to temporarily store data for the visit | 30 minutes |
Social sharing
doubleclick.net
| Name | Purpose | Expiration |
|---|---|---|
| DSID | Used for re-targeting, optimisation, reporting and attribution of online adverts. | Two weeks |
| IDE | Used for re-targeting, optimisation, reporting and attribution of online adverts. | One year |
| Name | Purpose | Expiration |
|---|---|---|
| fr | Used by Facebook to deliver a series of advertisement products such as real time bidding from third party advertisers. | Three months |
| Name | Purpose | Expiration |
|---|---|---|
| 1P_JAR APISID |
Google uses these cookies, based on recent searches and interactions, to customise ads on Google websites. | Session Two years |
| HSID | Google security cookie. | Varies from end of session up to two years |
| NID | User preferences e.g. language, search results per page etc. | Six months |
| SAPISID, SID | Used by Google to store user preferences and information of Google maps. | Two years |
| SIDCC | Google tracking cookie. | Session |
| SSID | Google tracking cookie. | Two years |
| Name | Purpose | Expiration |
|---|---|---|
| BizoID, UserMatchHistory | Used for LinkedIn Ad analytics. | Six months |
| lang | Remembers the user's selected language version of a web site. | Session |
| bcookie | Used by LinkedIn for tracking the use of embedded services. | Two years |
| lidc | Used by LinkedIn for tracking the use of embedded services. | Session |
| Name | Purpose | Expiration |
|---|---|---|
| guest_id | Collects anonymous data related to the user's visits to the website, such as the number of visits, average time spent on the web site and which pages have been loaded, with the purpose of personalising and improving the Twitter service. | Two years |
| personalization_id | Allows the sharing of content on Twitter. | Two years |
Marketing
Marketo
| Name | Purpose | Expiration |
|---|---|---|
| Munchkin cookie (_mkto_trk) | This allows a website to track visitor behaviour on the sites on which the cookie is installed and to link a visitor to the recipient of an email marketing campaign, to measure campaign effectiveness. | Two years |
How do I change my cookie settings?
You can control the use of cookies using the Cookie Control feature on this website, which works with most browsers and devices.
Cookie Control uses a cookie to remember your preferences. If you clear any cookies from your browser or device then you may need to reset your Cookie preferences when you next visit.
Most web browsers allow some control of most cookies through the browser settings.
To opt out of Google Analytics on all websites visit http://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout.
Cookies updates
This cookies policy may be amended by us at any time.
Contact us
For any information on our cookies, please contact: Customer Enquiries or 0345 279 1000 or write to: The Optima Building, 58 Robertson Street, Glasgow, G2 8DQ.