Cookie Policy
We use cookies to keep your basket working, to secure checkout, and — only if you agree — to understand how the site is used and measure our adverts.
Nothing beyond the essentials runs until you make a choice on the cookie banner, and you can change that choice at any time using Cookie settings in the footer.
1. What cookies are
A cookie is a small file a website stores in your browser. Some are essential — without them your basket would empty every time you moved to a new page. Others are optional and exist to measure things. We also use similar technologies such as pixels and local storage, and we treat them the same way as cookies.
2. The cookies we use
| Category | What it is for | Examples | Runs before you consent? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strictly necessary | Keeps your basket and session, secures checkout, prevents fraud, remembers your cookie choice | WooCommerce basket and session cookies, Stripe fraud-prevention, CookieYes consent record | Yes — the shop cannot function without them, and no consent is required for these |
| Analytics | Tells us which pages and products people actually use, so we can improve them | Google Analytics 4 | No |
| Advertising | Measures which adverts lead to a sale, and allows relevant adverts to be shown to you | Google Ads conversion tracking and remarketing | No |
Analytics and advertising cookies are placed only after you accept them. If you decline, the site works exactly the same — we simply lose the ability to measure it.
3. Advertising and how we measure it
We advertise on Google. To know whether an advert actually led to a sale, Google needs to connect the click on the advert to the completed order.
If you have accepted advertising cookies, then when you complete an order we send Google a scrambled (hashed) version of your email address and phone number. Hashing is one-way: it turns the value into a fixed string of characters that cannot be turned back. Neither we nor Google can read your email address or phone number from it. Google uses it only to match your purchase to an advert click.
If you decline advertising cookies, none of this happens.
4. How to change your mind
- Select Cookie settings in the footer of any page to reopen the banner and change your categories.
- Your choice is remembered for 12 months, then we ask again.
- Withdrawing consent stops future cookies. Cookies already stored can be cleared in your browser — see below.
5. Managing cookies in your browser
Every major browser lets you view, block and delete cookies. The controls are usually under Settings, then Privacy:
- Chrome — Settings › Privacy and security › Third-party cookies
- Safari — Settings › Safari › Privacy & Security
- Firefox — Settings › Privacy & Security
- Edge — Settings › Cookies and site permissions
Blocking strictly necessary cookies will stop the basket, checkout and account areas from working. If the site suddenly forgets your basket, that is usually why.
6. Third-party services
Some features are provided by other companies, and they set their own cookies when you use them. Their handling of your information is governed by their own privacy notices:
| Service | What it does here |
|---|---|
| Stripe | Processes payments and screens for fraud at checkout |
| Google (Analytics, Ads, Tag Manager) | Site analytics and advert measurement |
| CookieYes | Shows the cookie banner and stores your consent choice |
| Trustpilot | Displays independent customer reviews |
| Jetpack (Automattic) | Site statistics and security |
7. Changes and contact
We review this policy whenever our technology or the law changes, and the date at the top always shows the current version.
For any question, email support@autosoftkey.co.uk. Our Privacy Policy explains what we do with personal information more generally.