About Cookies

By now you probably know that Connect’s Conversion and Referral functionality depends on the end user allowing Connect to set cookies. Using cookies is widespread in e-commerce sites today. In fact, if a user decides not to accept cookies, it is nearly impossible to use the Internet in any meaningful way. However, many people have serious privacy concerns about allowing cookies. Most of these concerns are the result of an incomplete or inaccurate understanding of how cookies are used.

For example, many people do not know that a cookie can only be read by the same system that set it. For example, if you purchase an item from www.e-commerce.com, e-commerce.com sets a cookie on your computer with information about that purchase. Only e-commerce.com can retrieve that information.

Connect's cookies provide the ability to tie together events that are probably related and Connect uses that information to drive marketing efforts. There is no new information collected. A vendor sends a marketing e-mail with a hyperlink. The user clicks the link to browse the site and then makes a purchase from the web site. The cookies set on the computer allow Connect to assume a relationship between the marketing e-mail (at the link, conversation, and campaign levels) and the purchase.