Last updated: 1 August 2023
This website (www2.ukbiobank.ac.uk, referred to as the “website” or “site” in this cookies policy) is run by UK Biobank Limited (collectively referred to as “Biobank“, “we“, “us” or “our” in this cookies policy).
Our website uses cookies to distinguish you from other users of our website. This helps us to provide you with a good experience when you browse our website and also allows us to improve our site.
What are cookies?
A cookie is a small file of letters and numbers that we store on your browser or the hard drive of your computer. Cookies contain information that is transferred to your computer’s hard drive.
Cookies set by the website owner (in this case, by us) are called ‘first party cookies’. Cookies set by parties other than the website owner are called ‘third party cookies’. Third party cookies enable third party features or functionality to be provided on or through the website (e.g. like interactive content and analytics). The parties that set these third party cookies can recognise your computer both when it visits the website in question and also when it visits certain other websites.
Cookies may be either “persistent” cookies or “session” cookies: a persistent cookie will be stored by a web browser and will remain valid until its set expiry date, unless deleted by the user before the expiry date; a session cookie, on the other hand, will expire at the end of the user session, when the web browser is closed.
We use both session and persistent cookies on our website. You can block cookies by activating the setting on your browser that allows you to refuse the setting of all or some cookies. However, if you use your browser settings to block all cookies (including essential cookies) you may not be able to access all or parts of our site.
Why do we use cookies?
We use first party and third party cookies for several reasons. Some cookies are required for technical reasons in order for our website to operate, and we refer to these as ‘essential’ or ‘strictly necessary’ cookies. Other cookies enable us to track and target the interests of our users to enhance the experience on our website. Third parties serve cookies through our website for analytics and other purposes. We use the following cookies:
- Strictly necessary cookies.These are cookies that are required for the operation of our website and to use some of its features. They include, for example, session cookies that ensure normal navigation of the website.
- Analytical or performance cookies.These allow us to recognise and count the number of visitors and to see how visitors move around our website when they are using it. This helps us to improve the way our website works, for example, by ensuring that users are finding what they are looking for easily.
- Functionality cookies.These are used to recognise you when you return to our website. This enables us to personalise our content for you, greet you by name and remember your preferences (for example, your choice of language or region).
- Social networking cookies.These cookies are used to enable you share pages and content that you find interesting on our website through third party social networking and other websites. These cookies may also be used for advertising purposes too.
You can find more information about the individual cookies we use and the purposes for which we use them in the table below:
| Cookie Name | Who serves these cookies and its purpose | Duration | Type | How to refuse – see “How can I control cookies” section below or click the following opt-out links |
| __sharethis_cookie_test__ | This cookie determines whether the browser accepts cookies | Session only | Necessary | Because this cookie is strictly necessary to deliver the website to you, you cannot refuse it. However, you can block or delete it by changing your browser settings, as described below under the heading “How can I control cookies?” |
| ARRAffinity | This cookie is used to distribute traffic to the website on several servers in order to optimise response times. | Session only | Necessary | Because these cookies are strictly necessary to deliver the website to you, you cannot refuse them. However, you can block or delete them by changing your browser settings, as described below under the heading “How can I control cookies?” |
| ASP.NET_SessionId | This cookie preserves the visitor’s session state across page requests. | Session only | Necessary | Because this cookie is strictly necessary to deliver the website to you, you cannot refuse it. However, you can block or delete it by changing your browser settings, as described below under the heading “How can I control cookies?” |
| CookieControl | This cookie stores the user’s cookie consent state for the current domain | 3 months | Necessary | Because this cookie is strictly necessary to deliver the website to you, you cannot refuse it. However, you can block or delete it by changing your browser settings, as described below under the heading “How can I control cookies?” |
| UMB_UPDCHK, UMB_CONTEXT, UMB-XSRF-TOKEN, UMB-XSRF-V | These cookies are set by the website using the Umbraco web content management system. It is usually only seen by site administrators accessing the back end of the website, rather than general website users. | 1 month | Necessary | Because this cookie is strictly necessary to deliver the website to you, you cannot refuse it. However, you can block or delete it by changing your browser settings, as described below under the heading “How can I control cookies?” |
| __utma | This cookie is set by Google Analytics and is used to distinguish users and sessions. The cookie is created when the JavaScript library executes and there are no existing __utma cookies. The cookie is updated every time data is sent to Google Analytics. | 2 years | Analytical | Opt-out link for Google Analytics. |
| __utmc | This cookie is set by Google Analytics and is deleted when the user closes the browser. The cookie is used to enable interoperability with an older version of Google analytics and used in conjunction with the __utmb cookie to determine new sessions/visits. | Session only | Analytical | Opt-out link for Google Analytics. |
| __utmz | This cookie is set by Google analytics and is used to store the traffic source or campaign through which the visitor reached the site. | 5 months | Analytical | Opt-out link for Google Analytics. |
| __utmt | The cookie is set by Google Analytics and is used to throttle request rate. | 10 minutes | Analytical | Opt-out link for Google Analytics. |
| __utmb | The cookie is set by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to determine new sessions/visits. The cookie is created when the JavaScript library executes and there are no existing __utma cookies. The cookie is updated every time data is sent to Google Analytics. | 30 minutes | Analytical | Opt-out link for Google Analytics. |
| __utmv | This cookie is set by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to store website user custom variable data. The cookie is updated every time data is sent to Google Analytics. | 2 years | Analytical | Opt-out link for Google Analytics. |
| _ga | This cookie is set by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to distinguish users. | 2 years | Analytical | Opt-out link for Google Analytics. |
| _gid | This cookie is set by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to distinguish users. | 24 hours | Analytical | Opt-out link for Google Analytics. |
| _gat | This cookie is set by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to throttle request rate. | 1 minute | Analytical | Opt-out link for Google Analytics. |
| AMP_TOKEN | This cookie is set by Google Analytics. The cookie contains a token that can be used to retrieve a Client ID from AMP Client ID service. | 30 seconds to 1 year | Analytical | Opt-out link for Google Analytics. |
| _gac_UA-177289360-3 | This cookie is set by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to measure how website users use the website. | 90 days | Analytical | Opt-out link for Google Analytics. |
| _gat_gtag_UA-177289360-3 | This cookie is set by Google Analytics. The cookie is used to measure how website users use the website. | 1 minute | Analytical | Opt-out link for Google Analytics. |
| IDE | This cookie is used by Google DoubleClick to register and report the website user’s actions after viewing or clicking one of the advertiser’s ads with the purpose of measuring the efficacy of an ad and to present targeted ads to the user. | 1 year | Analytical | Opt-out link for Google. |
| test_cookie | This cookie is used by Google DoubleClick to check if the user’s browser supports cookies. | 1 day | Analytical | Opt-out link for Google. |
| WIDGET::local::assignments | This cookie is used by SoundCloud to implement, measure and improve their embedded content/service on the website – The collection of data also includes visitors’ interaction with embedded content/service. This can be used for statistics or marketing purposes. | Persistent | Analytical | Opt-out link for Soundcloud. |
| guest_id | This cookie is set by Twitter. This cookie collects data related to the user’s visits to the website, such as the number of visits, average time spent on the website and which pages have been loaded, with the purpose of personalising and improving the Twitter service. | 2 years | Analytical | Opt-out link for Twitter. |
| 1P_JAR | This cookie is set by Youtube/Google. This cookie sets a unique ID to remember your preferences and other information such as website statistics and track conversion rates. | 30 days | Functional | Opt-out link for Youtube (Google). |
| GPS | This cookie is set by Youtube. This cookie registers a unique ID on mobile devices to enable tracking based on geographical GPS location. | 1 day | Functional | Opt-out link for Youtube (Google). |
| VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE | This cookie is set by Youtube. This cookie tries to estimate the users’ bandwidth on pages with integrated YouTube videos. | 179 days | Functional | Opt-out link for Youtube (Google). |
| YSC | This cookie is set by Youtube. This cookie registers a unique ID to keep statistics of what videos from YouTube the user has seen. | Session only | Functional | Opt-out link for Youtube (Google). |
| NID | This cookie is set by Youtube. This cookie contains a unique ID Google uses to remember your preferences and other information, such as your preferred language (e.g. English), how many search results you wish to have shown per page (e.g. 10 or 20), and whether or not you wish to have Google’s SafeSearch filter turned on. | Persistent | Functional | Opt-out link for Youtube (Google). |
| PREF | This cookie is set by Youtube. This cookie contains a unique ID Google uses to remember your preferences and other information, such as your preferred language (e.g. English), how many search results you wish to have shown per page (e.g. 10 or 20), and whether or not you wish to have Google’s SafeSearch filter turned on. | 8 months | Functional | Opt-out link for Youtube (Google). |
| yt-remote-cast-installed | This cookie is set by Youtube. This cookie stores the user’s video player preferences using embedded YouTube video | Session only | Functional | Opt-out link for Youtube (Google). |
| yt-remote-connected-devices | This cookie is set by Youtube. This cookie stores the user’s video player preferences using embedded YouTube video. | Persistent | Functional | Opt-out link for Youtube (Google). |
| yt-remote-device-id | This cookie is set by Youtube. This cookie stores the user’s video player preferences using embedded YouTube video. | Persistent | Functional | Opt-out link for Youtube (Google). |
| yt-remote-fast-check-period | This cookie is set by Youtube. This cookie stores the user’s video player preferences using embedded YouTube video. | Session only | Functional | Opt-out link for Youtube (Google). |
| yt-remote-session-app | This cookie is set by Youtube. This cookie stores the user’s video player preferences using embedded YouTube video. | Session only | Functional | Opt-out link for Youtube (Google). |
| yt-remote-session-name | This cookie is set by Youtube. This cookie stores the user’s video player preferences using embedded YouTube video. | Session only | Functional | Opt-out link for Youtube (Google). |
| sc_anonymous_id | This cookie is set by Soundcloud. This cookie allows users to embed files or other content onto the website, this function can be limited to specific visitors. | 10 years | Functional | Opt-out link for Soundcloud. |
| Player | This cookie is set by Vimeo. This cookie enables the the vimeo video to play and to collect analytics data such as how long a viewer has watched the video. | 1 year | Functional | Opt-out link for Vimeo. |
| vuid | This cookie is set by Vimeo. This cookie collects data on the user’s visits to the website, such as which pages have been read. | 2 years | Functional | Opt-out link for Vimeo. |
| personalization_id | This cookie is set by Twitter. The cookie allows the visitor to share content from the website onto their Twitter profile. | 2 years | Social networking | Opt-out link for Twitter. |
| st_samesite | Thiscookie is set by Share This. Used by ShareThis to track visitor’s website navigation and preferences – This is used for internal statistics and marketing. | Session only | Social networking | Opt-out link for ShareThis. |
| _clck | This cookie is installed by Microsoft Clarity to store information of how visitors use a website and help in creating an analytics report of how the website is doing. The data collected including the number visitors, the source where they have come from, and the pages visited in an anonymous form. | 1 year | Performance/analytical | Opt out link |
| _clsk | This cookie is installed by Microsoft Clarity to store information of how visitors use a website and help in creating an analytics report of how the website is doing. The data collected including the number visitors, the source where they have come from, and the pages visited in an anonymous form. | Session | Performance/analytical | Opt out link |
| MUID | This cookie is installed by Microsoft Clarity. It identifies unique web browsers visiting Microsoft sites. These cookies are used for advertising, site analytics, and other operational purposes. | 1 year | Performance/analytical | Opt out link |
| CLID | This cookie is installed by Microsoft Clarity. It identifies the first-time Clarity saw this user on any site using Clarity. | 1 year | Performance/analytical | Opt out link |
| SM | This cookie is installed by Microsoft Clarity. It is used in synchronizing the MUID across Microsoft domains. | Session | Performance/analytical | Opt out link |
| ANONCHK | Performance/analytical | Session | Performance/analytical | Opt out link |
| opt_awcid | It is used for campaigns mapped to Google Ads Customer IDs. | 1 day | Performance/analytical | Opt out link |
| opt_awgid | It is used for campaigns mapped to Google Ads Ad Group IDs | 1 day | Performance/analytical | Opt out link |
| opt_awkid | It is used for campaigns associated with Google Ads criteria IDs. | 1 day | Performance/analytical | Opt out link |
| opt_awmid | It is used for campaigns mapped to Google Ads Campaign IDs. | 1 day | Performance/analytical | Opt out link |
| opt_utmc | Stores the parameters for individual campaigns using Google Analytics. | 1 day | Performance/analytical | Opt out link |
| gaexp_rc | This is used to track the participation of users in specific experiments. | 10 seconds | Performance/analytical | Opt out link |
| opt_expid | This cookie is created when running a redirect experiment. It stores the experiment ID, the variant ID and the referrer to the page that’s being redirected. | 10 seconds | Performance/analytical | Opt out link |
| gaexp | Used to determine a user’s inclusion in A/B tests via Google Optimize and the expiry of experiments a user has been included in. | 90 days or less | Performance/analytical | Opt out link |
We also use Google Analytics to analyse the use of our website. Our analytics service provider generates statistical and other information about website use by means of cookies. The analytics cookies used by our website have the following names: __utma, __utmb, __utmc, __utmt, __utmz, __utmv, _ga, _gid, _gat, AMP_TOKEN, _gac_UA-177289360-3 and _gat_gtag_UA-177289360-3.
The information generated relating to our website is used to create reports about the use of our website.
Our analytics service provider’s privacy policy is available at Google Privacy Policy.
How can I control cookies?
You have the right to decide whether or not accept or reject non-essential cookies. You can change your cookie preferences at any time by clicking on the the cookie control icon on the bottom left corner of any page on this website. You can then adjust the available sliders to “On” or “Off”. You may need to refresh your page for your settings to take effect.
Alternatively, you can also exercise your cookie preferences by clicking on the appropriate opt-out links provided in the cookie table above.
You can also set or amend your web browser controls to accept or refuse cookies. If you choose to reject cookies, you may still use our website, though some functionality of the website and your access to some areas of our website may be restricted. As the means by which you can refuse cookies through your web browser controls vary from browser-to-browser, you should visit your browser’s help menu for more information.
What about other tracking technologies, like web beacons?
Cookies are not the only way to recognise or track visitors to a website. We may use other, similar technologies from time to time, like web beacons (sometimes called ‘tracking pixels’ or ‘clear gifs’). These are tiny graphics files that contain a unique identifier that enable us to recognise when someone has visited our website. This allows us, for example, to deliver video content embedded on our website and to facilitate sharing of our news pages to social media. In many instances, these technologies are reliant on cookies to function properly, and so declining cookies will impair their functioning.
How often will you update this Cookie Policy?
We may update this cookie policy from time to time in order to reflect, for example, changes to the cookies we use or for other operational, legal or regulatory reasons. Please therefore re-visit this cookie policy regularly to stay informed about our use of cookies and related technologies.
The date at the top of this cookie policy indicates when it was last updated.
Where can I get further information?
If you have any questions about our use of cookies or other technologies, please email us at [email protected].