Cookie policy.
What Are Cookies?
Cookies are small text files that websites place on your device when you visit. They’re used for lots of things, keeping you logged in, remembering your preferences, and understanding how people use a site.
Under UK law (the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations, PECR, and UK GDPR), we need to tell you what cookies we use and get your consent before placing non-essential ones.
Managing Your Preferences
When you first visit phdnetworks.co.uk, you’ll see a cookie banner. You can:
- Accept all, allow all cookie categories
- Decline non-essential, keep only strictly necessary cookies
- Customise, choose which categories you allow
You can change your preferences at any time by clicking the “Cookie Settings” link in the footer of our website.
Note: withdrawing consent doesn’t delete cookies already placed. You can delete those manually in your browser settings.
Cookie Categories
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are essential for the website to function. They don’t require your consent under PECR.
| Cookie | Purpose | Duration | Provider |
|---|---|---|---|
| PHPSESSID | Maintains your session on the server (if applicable) | Session | Server/PHP |
| wordpress_* | WordPress login sessions (logged-in users only) | Session | WordPress |
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable enhanced functionality, things like remembering form inputs or preferences. You can disable them, but some features may not work as expected.
We currently use minimal functional cookies on phdnetworks.co.uk. If this changes, this section will be updated.
Analytics Cookies
These help us understand how visitors use our website, which pages are popular, how people arrive, where they drop off. The data is aggregated and anonymised; it doesn’t identify you personally.
We use these to improve our website and understand what content is useful.
| Cookie | Purpose | Duration | Provider |
|---|---|---|---|
| _ga | Unique identifier for distinguishing users in GA4 | 2 years | Google Analytics 4 |
| _ga_QWJ486QV99 | Session state for GA4 property | 2 years | Google Analytics 4 |
| _gid | Distinguishes users, stores session information | 24 hours | Google Analytics 4 |
| _gat | Throttles request rate to Google Analytics | 1 minute | Google Analytics 4 |
| _gac_* | Contains campaign-related information (if Google Ads linked) | 90 days | Google Analytics 4 |
IP anonymisation: We have configured Google Analytics 4 to anonymise IP addresses before storage. We do not use the “Share data with Google” options that would feed your data into Google’s advertising systems without consent.
→ Google Privacy Policy | Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on
Marketing Cookies
These cookies track your visits across websites to build a profile of your interests. They’re used to show you relevant adverts on other platforms (Google and Meta/Facebook). We only place these with your consent.
Google Ads
| Cookie | Purpose | Duration | Provider |
|---|---|---|---|
| _gcl_au | Google Ads conversion linker, links ad clicks to conversions | 90 days | Google Ads |
| IDE | Used by Google DoubleClick to record and report ad click actions | 1 year | Google / DoubleClick |
| DSID | Identifies a signed-in Google user across Google products | 2 weeks | |
| NID | Used to customise Google ads and remember your preferences | 6 months |
→ Google Ads Privacy | Google Ad settings
Meta (Facebook/Instagram) Pixel
| Cookie | Purpose | Duration | Provider |
|---|---|---|---|
| _fbp | Facebook Pixel, identifies browsers for advertising and analytics | 90 days | Meta |
| fr | Used to deliver, measure, and improve the relevance of ads on Facebook | 90 days | Meta |
| _fbc | Stores the Facebook click identifier from the last time you clicked a Facebook ad | Session / 90 days | Meta |
→ Meta Privacy Policy | Meta Ad Preferences
Third-Party Cookies
Some cookies are set by third-party services embedded on our site (e.g. YouTube videos, Google Maps). These are governed by those services’ own privacy and cookie policies. We’ll list them here if and when we embed third-party content that sets cookies.
How to Delete or Block Cookies
Beyond our cookie preference centre, you can manage cookies directly in your browser:
- Chrome: Settings → Privacy and security → Cookies and other site data
- Firefox: Settings → Privacy & Security → Cookies and Site Data
- Safari: Preferences → Privacy → Manage Website Data
- Edge: Settings → Cookies and site permissions → Cookies and site data
You can also use browser extensions like Privacy Badger or uBlock Origin to block third-party tracking cookies.
Note: blocking all cookies will affect website functionality, you may not be able to use contact forms or other interactive features properly.
More Information
For more detail on how we use personal data generally, see our Privacy Policy.
To get in touch about cookies or data:
Email: hello@phdnetworks.co.uk
Post: Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS12