Cookie Policy
This page lists every cookie this website sets, who sets it and why. It describes what the site actually does, checked against the browser rather than copied from a template. Last reviewed 21 July 2026.
The short version
Nothing on this site needs a cookie to work. There is no login, no basket and no session. Three Google services set cookies here: Google Analytics, which sets its cookies only if you accept it, Google AdSense, which shows ads on articles, and Google Funding Choices, which runs Google's own consent prompt inside those ads.
Analytics, and how to turn it off
We use Google Analytics 4 (measurement ID G-8HVEDQR2H4) to see which pages get read and where visitors arrive from. It runs under Google Consent Mode. Until you press Accept it sets no cookies at all and sends only an anonymous signal that counts the visit without identifying you or storing anything on your device.
It always runs with IP anonymisation on, Google Signals off and ad personalisation off. When you accept, it additionally sets these cookies:
| Cookie | Set by | Purpose | Expires |
|---|---|---|---|
_ga | Google Analytics | Distinguishes one browser from another | 2 years |
_ga_8HVEDQR2H4 | Google Analytics | Keeps the session state for this property | 2 years |
Press Reject and both are actively deleted rather than left to expire. Your choice is remembered in your browser's local storage under the key vmf-consent, together with the date you made it. That is not a cookie and it is never sent to us or to anyone else. Accept and we do not ask again. Reject and we leave it alone for six months, then ask once more in case you have changed your mind. Clearing your browser data for this site clears it, and the banner returns.
You can change your mind at any time using the Privacy choices button in the bottom corner of any page.
Advertising on articles
Articles in the blog carry Google AdSense (publisher ID ca-pub-2734052961790226). The rest of the site, including the home, services, about and contact pages, carries no advertising and sets no advertising cookies.
Be aware that AdSense is not currently behind the Accept button. On an article it loads as the page loads, before you have answered our banner, and Google runs its own consent flow inside it for visitors in the EU and UK. We would rather say that plainly than imply a control we do not yet apply. The cookies it can set include:
| Cookie | Set by | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
__gads, __gpi | Ad selection, frequency capping and measurement | |
__eoi | Ad fraud and invalid traffic detection | |
test_cookie | Checks whether the browser accepts cookies at all | |
FCCDCF, FCNEC | Google Funding Choices | Stores the consent choice made in Google's own prompt |
Cookies are only part of it. Loading an article, before you have answered our banner, also opens connections to pagead2.googlesyndication.com, googleads.g.doubleclick.net, fundingchoicesmessages.google.com and ep1.adtrafficquality.google. Those requests carry your IP address and browser details to Google whether or not a cookie is stored, so blocking cookies alone does not prevent them. An ad blocker or a domain blocker does.
To control these, use the ad settings link in Google's own prompt, or manage them at Google My Ad Center. Blocking third party cookies in your browser also stops them.
The contact form
The contact form sets no cookies. It carries a hidden field and a timing check to stop automated spam, both of which live in the page and are discarded once the message is sent. What you type is emailed to us and used to reply to you, nothing else. See the privacy policy.
What this site does not use
No Facebook pixel, no LinkedIn insight tag, no advertising retargeting of our own, no session recording, no heatmaps, no A/B testing tools and no cookies of our own beyond the consent key described above. If that changes, this page changes with it.
Managing cookies in your browser
Every browser lets you see, block and delete cookies, usually under Settings, then Privacy. Blocking all cookies will not break anything here, because nothing on this site depends on one.
Questions
Email pr@visualmediafactory.com and a person will answer.