TRACKING TECHNOLOGIES

  • Cookies: “Cookies” give users a special ID, which are small text files that are stored in the memory of a user’s computer, mobile, e-reader, tablet or other device used to access the Online Services (“Device”). ALM employs cookies to recognize you and your access privileges for certain locations on the Online Services as well as to track site usage. Subscribers who do not accept cookies from the Online Services cannot access many areas of the Online Services. We use both “session ID cookies” and “persistent cookies.” Session ID cookies are used to store information while a user is logged into the Online Services and expire when the user closes his/her browser. Persistent cookies are used to make tasks like logging into the Online Services easier for returning users by remembering a user’s login information. Persistent cookies stay on a user’s hard drive from one session to the next. “Flash cookies,” known as local shared objects, are data files placed on a Device via the Adobe Flash plug-in that may be built-in to or downloaded by you to your Device to personalize your visit. Our third-party service providers also may use Flash cookies to collect and store information. Flash cookies are different from standard browser cookies because of the amount of data, type of data, and how data is stored.
  • Web Beacons. Small graphic images or other web programming code called web beacons (also known as “1×1 GIFs” or “clear GIFs”) may be included in our web pages and messages. Web beacons may be invisible to you, but any electronic image or other web programming code inserted into a web page or email can act as a web beacon. Web beacons or similar technologies may be used for a number of purposes, including, without limitation, to count visitors to the Online Services, to monitor how users navigate the Online Services, to count how many emails that were sent were actually opened or to count how many particular articles or links were actually viewed.
  • Embedded Scripts. An embedded script is programming code that is designed to collect information about your interactions with the Online Services, such as the links you click on. The code is temporarily downloaded onto your Device from our web server or a third party service provider, is active only while you are connected to the Online Services, and is deactivated or deleted thereafter.
  • HTML5. We may use HTML5 in the Online Services, including without limitation in ALM mobile websites and certain mobile applications for the iPhone or iPad (and any other Apple iOS device). HTML5 has browser web storage that does not rely on traditional browser cookies. Like Flash cookies, HTML5 storage doesn’t use the browser “cookies” file. The ability of a user to disable HTML5 storage while simultaneously leaving cookies enabled is browser dependent.
  • E-tags/cache browsers/web logs. Like most standard website servers, we log IP addresses (a unique number assigned to every computer on the Internet) and Device identification in order to improve security, analyze trends and administer the Online Services.  We may track your movement within the Online Services, the pages from which you were referred, access times and browser types.  This information may include the browser you are using, the Internet address from which you linked to our Online Services, the operating system of your computer, the unique IP address of the computer or Device identification from the Device that you used to access our Online Services and usage and browsing habits.  We use this information in the aggregate to gauge the effectiveness, usage, and popularity of our Online Services, track information for statistical purposes, help diagnose and troubleshoot server malfunctions, analyze trends, track user movement in the aggregate, and gather information.  We may also use individual information we collect through web logs to send you targeted offers and other communications.