Last Updated - 20 May 2020

Cookie Version - V 1.0

Cookie Policy

Times of India Limited (“we”, “us”, “our”, “TOI”) understands that your privacy is important to data subject (“you”, “your”, “user”, “subscriber”) and we are committed for being transparent about the technologies we use.This cookie policy explains how and why cookies and other similar technologies may be stored on and accessed from your device when you use or visit TOI website that posts a link to this Policy (collectively, “the sites”).

This cookie policy should be read together with our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

This policy describes the information which Times Internet Limited (TIL) collect from you when you download, access, or use its Website Timesofindia.com (“Website”)

TOI Services may have links to third party website and services. This Policy does not apply to such third-party website and services.

By continuing to browse or use our sites, you agree that we can store and access essential cookies and other tracking technologies as described in this policy.

What are cookies and Other Tracking Technologies?

A cookie is a small text file that a website saves on your computer or mobile device when you visit the site. It enables the website to remember your actions and preferences (such as login, language, font size and other display preferences) over a period of time, so you don’t have to keep re-entering them whenever you come back to the site or browse from one page to another. The other tracking technologies work similarly to cookies and place small data files on your devices or monitor your website activity to enable us to collect information about how you use our websites. This allows our websites to recognize your device from those of other users of the websites. The information provided below about cookies also applies to these other tracking technologies.

How do we use cookies and other tracking technologies?

We use cookies to collect and store information when you access Website and use TIL Services. We use cookies for various purposes such as:

a)to provide you TIL Services and non-personalized advertisements

b)to identify your location

c)to identify your browser and device.

d)analytics and research,

e)Measure and analyze the audience for each page in order to subsequently improve the ergonomics, browsing, or visibility of content;

f)Measure the reliability of Website by analyzing the number of visits to its pages in real time, and offer varied ads that are adapted to users’ areas of interest;

g)Cookies may also be saved by social media tools if you use these functionalities (e.g. Twitter).

Type of Cookies

We use different types of cookies on the Website for different purposes.

1. First-party cookies

These cookies are set by the Website. And only that website can read them. Also called internal cookies.

We use these cookies as they are absolutely necessary to provide you TIL Services. If you choose to opt out of these cookies, then we may not be able to provide you TIL Services. The table below would help you to understand what these necessary cookies do.

2. Third-party cookies

These cookies are set by someone other than us when you access or use the Website. We have no control over third-party cookies - you can turn them off, but not through us. We endeavor to identify these cookies before they are used so that you can decide whether you wish to accept them or not. In cases where the third party acts as the data controller, how they use the data which they collect and/or process through our Websites is completely determined by them and TOI plays no role in the same. If you wish to know the list of third party cookies we use, drop an email at [email protected] and we will provide you with our key third-party providers.

3. Persistent Cookies

We use persistent cookies to improve your experience of using the sites. This includes recording your acceptance of our Cookie Policy to remove the cookie message which first appears when you visit the site.

4. Session Cookies

Session Cookies are temporary and deleted from your machine when your web browser closes. We use session Cookies to help us track internet usage as described above.

You may refuse to accept browser Cookies by activating the appropriate setting on your browser. However, if you select this setting you may be unable to access certain parts of the Sites. Unless you have adjusted your browser setting so that it will refuse Cookies, our system will check if Cookies can be captured when you direct your browser to our Sites.

The data collected by the websites through cookies that may be placed on your computer will not be kept for longer than is necessary to fulfil the purposes mentioned above. In any event, such information will be kept in our database until we get explicit consent from you to remove all the stored cookies.

We categorize cookies as follows:

a)Essential cookies

These Cookies are necessary to allow us to operate our Sites so you may access them as you have requested. These Cookies, for example, let us recognize that you have created an account and have logged in/out to access Site content. They also include Cookies that enable us to remember your previous actions within the same browsing session and secure our Sites.

b)Analytical/Performance cookies

These Cookies are used by us or third-party service providers to analyze how the Sites are used and how they are performing. For example, these Cookies track what content are most frequently visited and from what locations our visitors come from. If you subscribe to a newsletter or otherwise register with the Sites, these Cookies may be correlated to you. These Cookies include, for example, Google Analytics cookies.

c)Functionality cookies

These Cookies let us operate the Sites in accordance with the choices you make. These Cookies permit us to "remember" you in-between visits. For instance, we will recognize your user name and remember how you customized the Sites and services, for example by adjusting text size, fonts, languages and other parts of web pages that are alterable, and provide you with the same customizations during future visits.

d)Targeting or Advertising Cookies

These cookies are used to deliver content that is more relevant to you and your interests. They are also used to deliver targeted advertising or limit the number of times you see an advertisement as well as help measure the effectiveness of the advertising campaigns on TOI and other websites. They remember that you have visited one of our websites and this information is shared with other parties, including advertisers and our agencies. These cookies may also be linked to site functionality provided by third-parties.

Do these cookies collect personal data/identify me?

Most types of these cookies track consumers via their Device ID or IP address therefore they may collect personal data.

Accepting or Refusing Cookies

When you visit Website for the first time, a banner informs you of the use of cookies and provides a direct link to this information page. You have to provide explicit consent to our usage of cookies. You may refuse to accept browser cookies, however, we will continue capturing essential cookies to be able to provide you with our services. The cookie acceptance banner will no longer display on your screen.

The saving of a cookie on a device is governed by user-defined settings of the browser the user choses to use. If you have accepted the saving of cookies through your browser, they will be integrated into the pages and content you have viewed and may be temporarily stored in a dedicated location on your device. They will only be readable by their issuer.

You may still choose at any time to delete or disable all or part of these cookies using your browser, with the exception of the First Party Cookies which are necessary for the Website to function. There are different options for refusing cookies, however refusing the cookies may impact the functioning of the service you request on our Website.

Contact Us

More detail on how businesses use cookies is available at www.allaboutcookies.org.

If you have any queries regarding this Cookie Policy please contact our Data Protection Officer at [email protected].