Cookies

Our website uses HTTP cookies to save user-specific data.
In the following we explain what cookies are and why they are used so that you can better understand the following data protection declaration.

What exactly are cookies?

Whenever you surf the Internet, you are using a browser. Well-known browsers are, for example, Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Internet Explorer and Microsoft Edge. Most websites save small text files in your browser. These files are called cookies.

One thing cannot be dismissed out of hand: Cookies are really useful little helpers. Almost all websites use cookies. More precisely, they are HTTP cookies, as there are also other cookies for other areas of application. HTTP cookies are small files that our website stores on your computer. These cookie files are automatically placed in the cookie folder, which is the “brain” of your browser. A cookie consists of a name and a value. When defining a cookie, one or more attributes must also be specified.

Cookies save certain user data about you, such as language or personal page settings. When you call up our site again, your browser transmits the "user-related" information back to our site. Thanks to cookies, our website knows who you are and offers you the settings you are used to. In some browsers, each cookie has its own file, in others, such as Firefox, all cookies are stored in a single file.

There are both first-party cookies and third-party cookies. First-party cookies are created directly from our side, third-party cookies are created by partner websites (e.g. Google Analytics). Each cookie must be evaluated individually, as each cookie stores different data. The expiry time of a cookie also varies from a few minutes to a few years. Cookies are not software programs and do not contain viruses, Trojans or other "pests". Cookies cannot access information on your PC either.

For example, cookie data can look like this:

Name: _ga
Value: GA1.2.1326744211.152121253720-9
Purpose: Differentiation of website visitors
Expiry date: after 2 years

A browser should be able to support these minimum sizes:

• At least 4096 bytes per cookie

• At least 50 cookies per domain

• At least 3000 cookies in total

What types of cookies are there?

The question of which cookies we use in particular depends on the services used and is clarified in the following sections of the data protection declaration. At this point we would like to briefly discuss the different types of HTTP cookies.

There are 4 types of cookies:

Essential cookies
These cookies are necessary to ensure the basic functions of the website. For example, these cookies are needed when a user puts a product in the shopping cart, then continues surfing on other pages and only goes to checkout later. These cookies do not delete the shopping cart, even if the user closes his browser window.

Appropriate cookies
These cookies collect information about user behavior and whether the user receives any error messages. In addition, these cookies are used to measure the loading time and the behavior of the website in different browsers.

Goal-oriented cookies
These cookies ensure better user-friendliness. For example, entered locations, font sizes or form data are saved.

Advertising cookies
These cookies are also called targeting cookies. They serve to deliver customized advertising to the user. That can be very practical, but also very annoying.

When you visit a website for the first time, you will usually be asked which of these types of cookies you would like to allow. And of course this decision is also saved in a cookie.

How can I delete cookies?

You decide for yourself how and whether you want to use cookies. Regardless of which service or website the cookies originate from, you always have the option of deleting, deactivating or only partially allowing cookies. For example, you can block third-party cookies but allow all other cookies.

If you want to find out which cookies have been stored in your browser, if you want to change or delete cookie settings, you can find this in your browser settings:

Chrome : Delete, activate and manage cookies in Chrome

Safari : manage cookies and website data with Safari

Firefox : Delete cookies to remove data that websites have stored on your computer

Internet Explorer : deleting and managing cookies

Microsoft Edge : Deleting and managing cookies

If you generally do not want cookies, you can set up your browser so that it always informs you when a cookie is to be set. In this way, you can decide for each individual cookie whether or not to allow the cookie. The procedure is different depending on the browser. It is best to search for the instructions in Google with the search term “delete cookies Chrome” or “deactivate cookies Chrome” in the case of a Chrome browser.