Cookies Policy

The following information is intended to inform the user about the placement, use and management of cookies used by the www.pestera.ro website.

About cookies, what they are and how they work.

This website uses its own cookies as well as cookies added by third parties to provide visitors with a better browsing experience and services tailored to their needs and interests. In what we call the "modern web" or "web 2.0", cookies play an important role in facilitating access to and delivery of the many services the user enjoys on the Internet, such as: customising certain settings such as: language in which the site is viewed, date and time, keeping options/settings (including saving them) and preserving older preferences by accessing different buttons/functions.

Cookies provide site owners with valuable feedback on how their sites are being used by users, so that they can make them even more effective or accessible to users. They allow multimedia or other applications from other sites to be embedded (inserted/embedded) on certain pages to create a more valuable, useful and enjoyable browsing experience.

Please read the following information carefully:

An "Internet Cookie" (also known as a "browser cookie" or "HTTP cookie" or simply "cookie") is a small file of letters and numbers that will be stored on a user's computer, mobile device or other equipment from which the Internet is accessed.

The cookie is sent via a request issued by the web-server on which the website is hosted to the user's browser (e.g. Firefox, Internet Explorer, Chrome, etc.) and is completely "passive" in the sense that it does not contain software, viruses or spyware and cannot access information on the user's computer.

A cookie consists of 2 parts: the name and the content or value of the cookie and is uniquely associated with the domain on which the website that sent it to the user's browser is hosted (e.g. www.pestera.ro). Furthermore, the lifetime of a cookie is determined and only the webserver that sent the cookie can access it again, and only when the user returns to the website associated with that webserver.

Cookies do not require personal information in order to be used, nor can they personally identify Internet users.

What is a „cookie”?

Session cookies - these are stored temporarily in the cookie folder of the web browser until the user leaves the site or closes the browser window. Persistent cookies - these are stored on the computer or hardware used for a longer period of time and remain stored even after leaving the site or closing the web browser (and generally depend on the default lifetime 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 can be delivered as relevant to the user as possible.

There are two main categories of cookies:

A cookie contains information that links a browser (the user) to a specific web-server (the website). If a browser accesses that web-server again, it can read the information already stored and react accordingly.

Cookies provide users with a pleasant browsing experience and support the efforts of many websites to provide convenient services to users. Examples - online privacy preferences, site language choices or relevant advertising etc.

Advantages of cookies

Cookies are managed by web servers. The lifetime 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 not retained after the user leaves the site, and some cookies are retained and reused each time the user returns to that site ("persistent cookies"). However, cookies can be deleted by a user at any time via browser settings.

The lifetime of a cookie

Certain sections of content on some sites may be provided through third party/suppliers (e.g. a news box, a video or an advertisement). These third parties may also place cookies through the site and they are called "third party cookies" because they are not placed by the site in question. Third party providers must also comply with applicable law and the privacy policies of the site owner.

Cookies placed by third parties

Visiting this site may place cookies for the purposes of:

Site performance cookies
Visitor analytics cookies
Third party cookies
Performance cookies

Use of cookies by this site

Each time a user visits this site, analytics software provided by a third party generates a user analytics cookie. This cookie tells us whether you have visited this site before. The browser tells you if this cookie exists, and if not, one is generated. This allows us to track unique users who visit the site and how often they do so. This cookie cannot be used to identify individuals, they are only used for statistical purposes.

Visitor analytics cookies

On some pages, third parties may set their own anonymous cookies in order to track the success of an advertisement/application or to customize an application. Due to usage patterns, this site cannot access these cookies, just as third parties cannot access cookies held by this site. Example: when you share an article using the social media buttons located on this site, the social network will record your action.

Online advertising belonging to third parties. Some of these third parties use their own anonymous cookies to analyse how many people have viewed an advertisement, or to see how many people have viewed the same advertisement more than once. The companies that generate these cookies have their own privacy policies, and this site does not have access to these cookies. Third party cookies are used to show you targeted advertising on other sites based on your browsing on this site.

Third party cookies

Cookies store 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 enhances your web browsing experience. E.g.: settings for the language in which you want to access a site, keeping a user logged in to a membership account or email account, online security, keeping and remembering settings, etc.

Type of information stored and accessed through cookies

Cookies are at the heart of the efficient functioning of the Internet, helping to generate a user-friendly browsing experience tailored to each user's preferences and interests. Refusing or disabling cookies may make some sites unusable. Denying or disabling cookies does not mean that you will no longer receive online advertising, only that it will no longer be able to take into account your preferences and interests as evidenced by your browsing behaviour.

Examples of important uses of cookies (which do not require a user to log in via an account):

Content and services tailored to user preferences - news categories, weather, sports, maps, public and government services, entertainment sites and travel services. Offers tailored to users' interests - password retention, language preferences (e.g. displaying search results in English). Retention of child protection filters on Internet content (family mode options, safe search features).

Limiting the frequency of ads - limiting the number of times an ad is shown to a given user on a site.

Providing relevant advertising to the user. Measurement, optimisation and analytics features - such as confirming a certain level of traffic to a site, what type of content is viewed more and how a user gets to the site (e.g. via search engines, directly, from other sites etc). Sites perform these usage analytics to improve their sites for the benefit of the user.Security and privacy issues

Cookies are NOT viruses! They use a plain text format. They are not made up of pieces of code, so they cannot be executed or auto-run. Consequently, they cannot be duplicated or replicated on other networks to run or replicate again. As they cannot perform these functions, they cannot be considered viruses.

Cookies can still be used for negative purposes. Because they store information about users' preferences and browsing history, both on a particular site and across multiple sites, cookies can be used as a form of spyware. Many anti-spyware products are aware of this fact and consistently flag cookies for deletion as part of anti-virus/anti-spyware deletion/scanning procedures. Browsers generally have built-in privacy settings that provide different levels of cookie acceptance, validity period and automatic deletion after the user has visited a particular site.

The importance of cookies for the Internet

As identity protection is very important and is the right of every internet user, it is advisable to be aware of possible problems that may arise in relation to cookies. As cookies constantly transmit information back and forth between the browser and the site, if an attacker or unauthorised person interferes in the data transmission path, the information contained in cookies can be intercepted. Although very rare, this can happen if the browser connects to the server using an unencrypted network (e.g. an unsecured Wi-Fi network).

Other security issues related to cookies.

If a website does not require the browser to use only encrypted channels, attackers can use this vulnerability to trick browsers into sending information through unsecured channels. Attackers then use the information in order to unauthorised access certain sites. It is very important to be careful in choosing the most appropriate method of protecting personal information.

Other cookie-based attacks involve wrong cookie settings on servers.

Due to their flexibility and the fact that most of the most visited and largest sites use cookies, they are almost unavoidable. Disabling cookies will not allow the user access to the most popular and used sites including YouTube, Gmail, Yahoo, Google and many others.

A few tips that can ensure your browsing experience is worry-free with cookies:

Customise your browser settings for cookies to set a comfortable level of security.
If you don't mind cookies and you are the only person using your computer, you can set long expiry times for storing browsing history and personal access data.
If you share access to your computer, you can consider setting your browser to delete individual browsing data each time you close the browser, is the option to access sites that place cookies and delete any visiting information when you close your browsing session.
Install and constantly update your anti-spyware applications. Many spyware detection and prevention applications include detection of attacks on websites. This prevents your browser from accessing sites that could exploit browser vulnerabilities or download dangerous software.
Make sure your browser is always up to date.

Many cookie-based attacks exploit weaknesses in older versions of browsers. Cookies are everywhere and cannot be avoided if you want to enjoy access to the best and biggest sites on the Internet, local or international. With a clear understanding of how they work and the benefits they bring, you can take the necessary security measures so that you can surf the internet with confidence.

Tips for safe and responsible browsing based on cookies.

Disabling and refusing to receive cookies may make certain sites unusable or difficult to visit and use. Also, refusing to accept cookies does not mean that you will no longer receive or see online advertising.

It is possible to set your browser to stop accepting cookies, or you can set your browser to accept cookies only from a specific site. But, for example, if you are not registered using cookies, you will not be able to leave comments. All modern browsers offer the possibility to change cookie settings. These settings are usually found in your browser's "Options" or "Preferences" menu, or you can use the browser's "Help" option for more details.