Cookie Policy

1. Introduction

This Cookie Policy explains how BY BANKS L.L.C-FZ ("BY BANKS", "we", "us", or "our") uses cookies and similar technologies when you visit our website at bybanks.me (the "Website"). We believe in being straightforward about what we track and why.

2. What Are Cookies?

Cookies are small text files that are stored on your device (computer, tablet, or mobile) when you visit a website. They help websites remember your preferences and understand how you interact with the site.

3. Our Approach: Legitimate Interest

We use a small number of cookies to understand how visitors use our Website so we can improve it. This tracking operates under the legal basis of legitimate interest (GDPR Article 6(1)(f)), meaning it runs for all visitors by default.

We believe this is justified because:

We do not collect any personally identifiable information
IP addresses are anonymised (hashed) and cannot be traced back to you
Visitor identifiers are randomly generated and not linked to any identity
All data is first-party only — stored on our own servers, never shared with third parties
We do not use any third-party analytics services such as Google Analytics
We do not use cookies for advertising or marketing purposes

When you visit our Website, a banner informs you that we use cookies and explains your right to object. This banner is informational — it does not gate or control the tracking described below.

4. Cookies We Set

We set the following cookies when you visit our Website:

Functional Cookies

_bb_consent — Stores your cookie banner preference so we do not show the banner again. Duration: 1 year. Set by: your browser (JavaScript).

Analytics Cookies

_bb_vid — Anonymous visitor identifier. A random string used to understand whether you are a new or returning visitor. Contains no personal information. Duration: 1 year. Set by: our server (HttpOnly — cannot be read by JavaScript).
_bb_sid — Session identifier. Groups your page views into a single browsing session. Refreshed on each page load. Duration: 30 minutes. Set by: our server (HttpOnly).
_bb_jsv — JavaScript verification beacon. Confirms that your browser executes JavaScript, which helps us distinguish real visitors from automated bots. Duration: 30 minutes. Set by: your browser (JavaScript).

These cookies are set on every page load as part of our server-side analytics. The _bb_vid and _bb_sid cookies are HttpOnly, meaning they are managed entirely by our server and cannot be accessed, modified, or deleted by scripts running in your browser.

5. What We Track

Our analytics system records the following information when you visit the Website:

Pages you visit and the order you visit them
Time you spend actively engaging with each page
How far you scroll on each page
Clicks on links, buttons, and calls to action
Whether you start or complete a form
How you found us (the referring website or search engine)
Your general device type (desktop, mobile, or tablet)
Your country (detected via Cloudflare network headers, not your IP address directly)
Basic page performance metrics (load speed)

We do not track or store:

Your name, email, or any personal identity
Your IP address — we store only an irreversible 8-character hash that cannot be traced back to you
Your activity on any other website
Any information that could identify you as an individual

6. How We Use This Data

We use the data described above solely to:

Understand which pages and content are useful to visitors
Identify pages that are not meeting visitor expectations so we can improve them
Monitor the technical performance and speed of our Website
Detect and filter automated bot traffic and security threats
Understand how visitors navigate through our Website

We do not use this data to build personal profiles, serve advertising, or make automated decisions about individuals.

7. Third-Party Services

Our Website uses Cloudflare as a content delivery network and security proxy. Cloudflare may set its own cookies for security and performance purposes. These are governed by Cloudflare's Cookie Policy.

We do not use Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, or any other third-party tracking or advertising service.

8. Data Retention

We retain analytics data as follows:

Visitor and engagement data (page views, scroll depth, time on page) — retained indefinitely in anonymised form for long-term trend analysis
Bot and security probe data — retained for 7 to 90 days depending on category, then automatically deleted
Consent records — retained indefinitely for compliance purposes to demonstrate that we informed you about our use of cookies
Form submissions — retained as part of our business correspondence and managed separately under our Privacy Policy

9. Your Rights

Under GDPR and applicable data protection law, you have the right to:

Object to processing — You may object to our use of cookies and analytics at any time by contacting us using the details below. We will assess your objection and, where appropriate, exclude your traffic from our analytics.
Request information — You may ask us what data, if any, we hold that relates to your visit. Since we do not collect personal identifiers, we may not be able to locate data specific to you, but we will do our best to assist.
Delete cookies — You can delete cookies at any time through your browser settings. Note that our analytics cookies (_bb_vid and _bb_sid) are HttpOnly and can only be removed by clearing all cookies for bybanks.me in your browser. Deleting these cookies will not erase previously collected data but will cause you to be treated as a new visitor on your next visit.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details in Section 11.

10. Browser Settings

Most web browsers allow you to control cookies through their settings. You can usually find these options in your browser's "Settings", "Preferences", or "Privacy" menu. Blocking cookies entirely may affect your experience on some websites, though our Website will continue to function normally.

For more information on managing cookies in your browser:

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Cookie Policy from time to time. If we make significant changes, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. We encourage you to review this page periodically.