Cookie Policy
Last updated:
1. Introduction
This Cookie Policy explains how CAPSULES DIRECT LTD ("Capsules", "we", "us", "our") uses cookies and similar technologies on the Capsules.com public website and the customer portal at account.capsules.com (together, the "Site"). It should be read with our Privacy Policy, which explains how we handle personal data more generally.
Capsules.com is a business-to-business trade site for empty two-piece HPMC and gelatin capsules. This policy covers the public website and the private customer portal for trade customers.
We ask for your consent before optional analytics and advertising attribution on every regional site, and honor browser opt-out signals such as Global Privacy Control. Visitors in the United States are served by CAPSULES DIRECT LTD from the United Kingdom, and the UK's data protection rules apply to how we handle your data. The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) is the UK supervisory authority.
CAPSULES DIRECT LTD is registered in England and Wales (company number 17362490), registered office Rowood House, 26 Murdock Road, Bicester, Oxfordshire, OX26 4PP, United Kingdom. VAT number GB530725510. ICO registration: application C2059582, registration number to follow.
2. What cookies are
A cookie is a small text file that a website places on your device when you visit it. Cookies let the website recognize your device, remember your preferences, keep you signed in and operate securely. First-party cookies are stored for the site you are visiting; third-party cookies are stored for another domain. Session cookies normally last for a browser session; persistent cookies have a stated expiry, subject to browser controls.
In this policy, cookies also covers similar technologies that store or read information on your device, such as local storage and session storage. Local storage does not automatically expire unless the service or your browser removes it.
3. Consent and the types of cookie we use
Strictly necessary cookies support a service you request, such as keeping your portal session secure or remembering a privacy choice. Optional analytics and advertising attribution require your permission.
Google Analytics and its related website tracking stay off until you accept Google Analytics. Advertising attribution has a separate choice, off by default: it allows advertising click identifiers to be retained for understanding which campaigns bring inquiries. Accepting one does not enable the other, and neither signs you up to a newsletter.
If your browser sends a Global Privacy Control signal, we decline optional analytics and advertising attribution and clear accessible attribution history. Browsers marked as internal team visits are excluded from optional analytics and attribution. You can change your choices at any time using Privacy settings in the public website footer or on this page.
You can turn automatic regional suggestions off separately. This clears the detected-country cookie; the region you chose manually is retained. Reject all optional features turns off Google Analytics, advertising attribution and automatic regional suggestions. We no longer run the separate basic daily page-counting service.
4. Cookies and similar storage we use
| Cookie or storage | Set by / where | Purpose and choice | Lifetime |
|---|---|---|---|
cc | Capsules.com, public website | Remembers an approximate detected country to suggest the UK or US regional site. Country-level only. Cleared and no longer set when regional suggestions are off. | Up to 180 days from the last response that sets it. |
region | Capsules.com, public website | Remembers the regional site you choose manually. Your manual choice is kept when you turn automatic suggestions off. | 180 days, unless removed sooner. |
capsules_region_suggestions_v1 | Capsules.com, public website | Records that you turned automatic regional suggestions off. This is a preference, not a record of your browsing history. | 180 days when off; removed when you turn suggestions on. |
capsules_analytics_consent_v1 | Capsules.com, public website | Records your accepted or rejected Google Analytics choice. Necessary to respect that choice. | 180 days, unless changed or removed sooner. |
capsules_advertising_consent_v1 | Capsules.com, public website | Records the separate advertising-attribution choice. Off by default. Necessary to respect that choice. | 180 days, unless changed or removed sooner. |
capsules_attribution_v1 | Capsules.com, public website | Optional first and last campaign touch: landing path, referrer without query parameters, campaign fields and first-seen time. Stored only after analytics or advertising-attribution permission. Advertising click identifiers are included only with the separate advertising permission. | Up to 90 days from the first recorded touch; a later visit does not extend that original window. |
cdc_docs | Capsules.com, public website | Optional recent document-download history: document identifiers and times, limited to 30 entries. Requires Google Analytics permission. | Up to 180 days; older entries are discarded. |
cap_internal | Capsules.com, authorized team browsers | Excludes internal visits from optional website analytics and attribution. Set through the team's protected exclusion link. | Two years as configured; browser limits may shorten this. |
_ga, _ga_* | Google Analytics, first-party cookies on the public website | Optional visitor and session measurement after Google Analytics acceptance. | Google defaults to up to two years; property settings and browser limits may shorten this. |
capsules_tool_used:* (session storage) | Capsules.com, public website | Optional tool-name markers so the first-use analytics event is counted once per tab session. Requires Google Analytics permission. | Browser tab session, subject to browser session restoration. |
session_id | Customer portal at account.capsules.com | Necessary server-managed portal session, including secure sign-in. HttpOnly and Secure on the live portal. This is the portal session cookie; there is no separate website refresh-token cookie. | The live portal sets a seven-day expiry. Use of the portal may renew it; logout and security controls may invalidate it earlier. |
td_id (if you choose to trust a device for two-factor authentication) | Customer portal at account.capsules.com | Remembers an approved trusted device for the optional two-factor sign-in flow. HttpOnly. | Up to 90 days; security controls can invalidate the trust earlier. |
frontend_lang | Customer portal at account.capsules.com | Remembers the portal language. | One year as set by the live portal, unless changed or removed sooner. |
capsules.portal.sidebar.collapsed (local storage) | Customer portal | Remembers whether you collapsed the portal navigation. | Until cleared in the browser; no automatic expiry. |
capsules.vqq.team_review.v1_0*, capsules.vqq.lang (local storage) | Supplier qualification form | Saves the questionnaire draft, pending submission and file-verification state in your browser, and remembers language. Supports the form you are completing; it is not analytics. | Until you use the form's clear/start-over control or clear browser storage. Language remains until cleared or changed. |
Google Analytics cookies are first-party browser cookies even though information is sent to Google. Cookie expiry is different from the retention of information already received by Google. See Google's explanation of GA4 cookies.
Advertising attribution stores campaign click identifiers for our inquiry records. It does not enable Google advertising storage, remarketing or ad personalization: those consent types remain denied in the website's Google configuration. We do not use this feature to follow you around other websites.
When you submit a form without optional tracking permission, the server may record current-page campaign and referrer information already included in that request. It does not read optional browser history or reconstruct an earlier visit. The country captured against a request is country-level only. We do not set a cc-region state cookie; old duplicate consent and discontinued basic-statistics cookies are cleared when encountered.
Form-security services also process device and network signals to protect submissions from automated abuse. The information and service records they receive are described in our Privacy Policy.
5. Managing cookies
Use Privacy settings on the public website to change optional analytics, advertising attribution and regional suggestions. Withdrawing Google Analytics permission stops new website analytics requests and removes accessible Google Analytics cookies where possible. Withdrawing analytics also clears recent document history; source history may remain if you separately keep advertising attribution enabled. Withdrawing advertising permission removes its click identifiers; source history may remain if you keep analytics enabled. Rejecting both removes the attribution history.
Changing a browser choice does not automatically erase information previously received by Google or retained with an inquiry in our business records. You can ask for a review by contacting privacy@capsules.com. Choices apply to the browser you are using; another browser or cleared preference cookies may require a new choice.
Your browser settings can show, delete and block cookies and local storage. Browser-provider guidance is available for Chrome, Firefox, Safari and Edge, and from the ICO. Browser session restoration and storage limits can affect the durations above.
If you block the portal session cookie, sign-in and account functions may not work. If you remove regional preferences, the public website still works but may ask you to choose a region again. Clearing questionnaire or portal local storage removes the preferences or draft held in that browser.
6. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy to reflect changes in the cookies we use, the Site or the law. When we make a material change, we update the date at the top of this page. Where a new optional use requires consent, we ask before starting it.
7. Contact
CAPSULES DIRECT LTD, Rowood House, 26 Murdock Road, Bicester, Oxfordshire, OX26 4PP, United Kingdom. Company number 17362490. VAT number GB530725510.
Questions about cookies or personal data: privacy@capsules.com.
If you are not satisfied with how we handled a query, you have the right to complain to the ICO at ico.org.uk or on 0303 123 1113. We would appreciate the chance to resolve it first.
This policy is governed by the laws of England and Wales.