Website privacy policy

We may ask you to provide personal information to enable us to provide a specific service that you have requested, examples include:

• requesting a University prospectus
• we may ask you to voluntarily complete an online survey

The webpage requesting this personal information will provide details of how the information will be used. All personal data collected in this way will be processed in accordance with data protection legislation and will only be used for the purpose(s) specified at the time of collection.

In common with most websites we automatically log certain information about every visit to the site. This includes your IP address¹ and information relating to your requests from our servers, for example date and time, referrer, user agent (browser), request type and details of request size. This information is anonymous unless you have logged in to a secure area of the site using an identifying username and password. The information is used to help us manage the website (eg detecting bugs) and where necessary to investigate potential computer misuse or breaches in University regulations. Under normal circumstances these log files will only be accessed by authorised members of staff, however we do have a legal obligation to make our log files available to external authorities such as the Police, when requested.

¹An IP address is a unique number or address given to every computer or device when it connects to a network allowing it to be identified and communicated with.

Cookies are small text files which are placed on your computer’s hard drive to help us monitor the use of our website and provide access to certain features. A cookie does not identify the individual - only the computer used; it does not gives us access to your computer.

Cookies enable us to provide you with a better experience of our website. The University uses cookies to track user behaviour, improve and personalise the services we offer and remember previous actions (eg which items have been placed in an online shopping basket). We do not use cookies which have a high impact on your privacy and will regularly review the use of cookies on our site to protect your privacy.

Google Analytics

In common with many organisations the University uses Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by GoogleInc to enable us to analyse how our website is used. This means that information about use of our website may be transmitted to Google Inc. This information does not enable you to be identified and is not considered privacy intrusive. Users of the most popular web browsers can install a browser add-on which prevents information being transferred to Google.

Hotjar

On the University of Exeter site we use Hotjar to help us understand how users navigate the website and to gather user feedback via surveys. None of the data collected is personally identifiable. Find more information on the Hotjar website.

AB Tasty

We use AB Tasty to help us understand how users navigate our website and to allow us to test different versions of our site on particular audiences. The tool uses cookies to identify returning users and can use IP addresses to determine general location, but no other personally identifiable data is collected. Find further information on the AB Tasty website.

Remarketing

Third parties (including Google) use cookies to serve ads based on someone’s past visits to our website. This allows us to reach people who previously visited our website with appropriate messaging. Remarketing cookies expire 2 years from the time that the cookie is set or updated (whichever is later). The data collected is used in accordance with our privacy policy and Google’s privacy policy.

Facebook Pixel

Facebook pixel is code that is placed on our website. It helps us to track conversions from Facebook ads, optimise our ads based on collected data, build targeted audiences for future ads, and remarket to people who have already interacted with our website. Read more about Facebook's cookie policy.

Can I turn off cookies?

You can change the settings in your browser to refuse cookies; you can also delete cookies using the tools in your browser. However in doing so you may be unable to access certain feature of our website and our websites may not operate correctly in your browser. For more information about cookies please visit www.allaboutcookies.org

Which cookies do we use?

Download the CookieBot report (PDF)

You can opt out of these third party remarketing cookies: 

• opt out of Google Analytics
• opt out of LinkedIn advertising
• change your Facebook settings to control the ads you are shown
• Opt out of cookie-based advertisements via your online choices and switch off behavioural advertising from a large number of companies.

The University is committed to ensuring the security of our website and any information you provide using the site. The University has procedures in place to help protect against loss, misuse and alteration of information.

Password access

Where you require a password to access parts of the University’s website you are responsible for keeping the password safe and secure at all times, you must not share it with anyone else.

Third party links

The University website contains links to other websites which may be of interest to users. We are not responsible for the content of these websites and have no control over any information you may provide to third parties.

Information security policy

Read more information on our information security policy.

The University will not sell, distribute or lease your personal information to third parties unless we have informed you, have your permission or are required to by law. Information may be shared with third parties who are under contract to act for us.

The University takes its responsibilities under the Data Protection Act (DPA) and General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) seriously and will only process personal data in accordance with the Act. You have the right to access your personal data held by the University. Further information about accessing your data.

If you believe the information we are holding on you is incorrect or you require further information about how we use your information please contact dataprotection@exeter.ac.uk