We set six cookies in total: three that the site cannot work without, two for anonymous analytics and one that remembers your preferences. Nothing is set for advertising, and nothing follows you to other websites. This page lists every one of them.
01What cookies are
A cookie is a small text file that a website stores on your device when you visit it. Each time you come back, your browser sends the file to the site, which lets the site recognise you, keep you signed in and remember your settings. Cookies placed by us are first-party cookies; cookies placed by a service we rely on — an analytics provider, for example — are third-party cookies.
Some cookies disappear when you close the browser (session cookies); others stay on your device for a fixed period (persistent cookies). We also use two similar technologies — browser local storage and a tracking pixel in dashboard notification e-mails — and this policy covers them too. For brevity we call all of them cookies.
02How we use cookies
We keep cookies to a minimum. Everything we set falls into one of three groups:
- Necessary. They make the site and the dashboard work: keeping your session open, protecting forms against forgery, remembering that you have already answered the cookie bar. They cannot be switched off — without them you could not sign in.
- Analytics. They count visits and show us which pages are read and where visitors leave, so that we can improve the site. The data is aggregated and IP addresses are anonymised before they are stored. Set only if you accept them.
- Preference. They remember your language, the currency you want amounts displayed in and the layout of your dashboard. Set only if you accept them.
We do not use advertising cookies, we do not track you across other websites, and we do not sell data collected by cookies to anyone.
03Cookies we set
The table lists every cookie you may find on target.co.uk or in the dashboard, who sets it and for how long. Durations are the maximum lifetime — a cookie is removed earlier if you clear your browser data or withdraw consent.
“Session” means the cookie is deleted when you close the browser. Local storage entries follow the same rules as the cookie in the same row: target-cookies is mirrored to local storage so that your choice survives a cookie clean-up in some browsers.
04Managing cookies in your browser
You can accept or decline non-essential cookies on the cookie bar the first time you visit, and change your mind at any time in Cookie settings at the bottom of this page. You can also control cookies in the browser itself — every browser lets you view, delete and block cookies, for all sites or for target.co.uk alone:
- Google Chrome — Settings → Privacy and security → Third-party cookies, or See all site data and permissions to delete cookies for one site.
- Safari (macOS) — Settings → Privacy → Manage Website Data; tick “Prevent cross-site tracking” to block third-party cookies.
- Mozilla Firefox — Settings → Privacy & Security → Cookies and Site Data → Manage Data.
- Microsoft Edge — Settings → Cookies and site permissions → Manage and delete cookies and site data.
- Safari on iOS, Chrome on Android — the Settings app → the browser → Clear History and Website Data, or Site settings → Cookies.
If you block necessary cookies you will not be able to sign in to the dashboard, and the cookie bar will appear on every visit because your answer cannot be saved.
05Third-party cookies
Two kinds of third party may set cookies through our site. Google Analytics 4 (Google Ireland Ltd) sets the _ga cookies listed above, and only after you accept analytics cookies. Google processes the data as our processor; IP anonymisation is on, Google Signals and data sharing with other Google products are off, and the retention period is set to 14 months.
When you pay on a checkout page hosted by Target, our acquiring partners and the 3-D Secure directory servers of Visa and Mastercard may set session cookies needed to authenticate the card. Those cookies live only for the duration of the payment and are governed by the policies of the card scheme and your issuing bank.
Links to social networks in the header and footer simply open the network’s site — no social-media cookie is set until you arrive there.
06Changes to this policy
We review this policy whenever we add or remove a cookie and at least once a year. The date at the top of the page shows the current version. If a change is material — a new category of cookie, a new third party or a longer retention period — the cookie bar will ask for your consent again and will point out what has changed for 30 days after the update takes effect. Earlier versions are available on request.
07Contact
Questions about cookies or this policy go to our Data Protection Officer. We answer within 5 business days.
Data Protection OfficerTarget Financial Services Ltd
1 Poultry, London EC2R 8EJ, United Kingdom
E-mail: dpo@target.co.uk
General enquiries: info@target.co.uk · +44 20 3808 9720
If you are not satisfied with our answer, you have the right to complain to the UK Information Commissioner’s Office or to the supervisory authority in the EU country where you live or work. Other ways to reach us are listed on the contact page.