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Cookie policy
What this website stores on your device, the analytics we use only if you agree, and how you stay in control.
Last updated: 25 October 2026
Updated October 2026, under review. This version adds Google Analytics, which runs only if you agree to it. The wording is with our legal advisers and may change.
This policy explains how the website at bsvision.co.za, operated by BS Vision (Pty) Ltd, trading as BS Vision Corporate Consulting ("BS Vision", "we"), uses cookies and similar technologies. It forms part of our privacy notice and our website terms of use.
The short version
- The site keeps a few small, necessary items in your browser so it works and remembers your cookie choice. They are listed below.
- With your permission, we use Google Analytics to count visits and see which pages and buttons people use. It is off until you choose Accept analytics, and you can switch it off again at any time.
- We use no advertising cookies, we do not use Google's advertising features, and we do not sell or share visitor data for advertising.
- YouTube may set its own cookies, but only if you press play on a video.
What cookies and local storage are
A cookie is a small text file that a website places in your browser. It can be read back by that website (a first-party cookie) or by another service whose content appears on the page (a third-party cookie). Cookies are used to keep you signed in, remember settings, measure visits or follow you across sites for advertising.
Local storage and session storage are similar browser features that let a page keep small pieces of information on your device. Session storage is cleared when you close the tab. Local storage stays until you or the site clears it. Neither is sent to a web server automatically.
Necessary storage (always on)
These items make the site work and remember the choices you make. They are set by us, stay on your device and are not used to identify or track you, so they do not need your consent. The site still works if your browser blocks them, but it may ask for your cookie choice again on each page.
| Name | Type | Purpose | How long |
|---|---|---|---|
| bsv-consent | Local storage (first party) | Remembers your cookie choice (analytics on or off), the date you made it and the version of this policy you answered, so we do not ask on every page | 12 months, after which we ask again. We also ask again if this policy changes |
| bsv_consent | Cookie (first party) | The same record as bsv-consent, used only if your browser blocks local storage | 12 months |
| bsv-notice | Local storage (first party) | Remembers that you have read the short cookie notice shown while analytics is not in use | Until you clear your browser data |
| bsv-intro | Session storage (first party) | Remembers that you have already seen the opening animation on the home page, so it does not replay each time you return to the page in the same tab | Until you close the tab |
| bsv-utm | Session storage (first party) | If you arrived through a link with campaign tags (for example utm_source=newsletter), keeps those tags so that a quote request or booking you send can say which campaign brought you to us. It holds only the tags, never anything you type | Until you close the tab |
| bsv-assist | Session storage (first party) | Keeps your conversation with the website assistant ("Ask BS Vision") so it continues as you move between pages in the same tab. The assistant runs entirely in your browser: what you type is never sent to us or to any AI service, and anything that looks like an email address, phone number or ID number is removed before the conversation is kept | Until you close the tab, or choose Start over in the assistant |
The assistant conversation contains only what you type, so please do not type personal details into it. Campaign tags reach us only as part of a quote request or booking you choose to send. Our forms protect themselves against abuse on the server side, using a short-lived, one-way hashed form of your internet address, as described in our privacy notice. This does not involve storing anything on your device.
Analytics cookies (only if you accept)
We use Google Analytics 4 to understand how the website is used: how many people visit, which pages they read, which buttons and links they use, and whether forms such as quote requests and bookings are sent successfully. This helps us fix what does not work and improve what people use most.
Google Analytics does not load, and sets no cookies, until you choose Accept analytics. If you choose Reject, or make no choice, nothing is sent to Google.
| Name | Provider | Purpose | How long |
|---|---|---|---|
| _ga | Google (first-party cookie set by Google Analytics) | Gives your browser a random number so that repeat visits from the same browser can be counted. It does not contain your name or contact details | Up to 13 months (395 days) |
| _ga_<container id> | Google (first-party cookie set by Google Analytics) | Keeps track of the current visit, for example how many pages were viewed and when the visit started | Up to 13 months (395 days) |
What is collected. The pages you view, the website you came from, the campaign tags in the link you used, your approximate location (country and city, worked out from your internet address, which Google Analytics 4 does not store), your type of device, browser and screen size, and the site events listed below.
The events we record. Clicks on our main buttons (for example "See the courses", "Request a quote", "Book" and "Ask BS Vision"), the type of contact link you use (phone, email or WhatsApp, but never the number or address), links to other websites (the website's domain only), slideshow, course tab and module pop-up use, how far you scroll on the main pages, and the successful sending of a quote request, booking, consultation request or newsletter subscription. We never send Google your name, email address, phone number, anything you type into a form or the assistant, or the details of a booking.
Settings we use. Google signals and advertising personalisation are switched off, Google's advertising consent signals are always set to "denied", and the address sent to Google keeps only campaign tags. Google keeps the event data for 14 months at most, after which it is deleted (see how long we keep information in our privacy notice).
Who processes it. Google Analytics is provided by Google LLC (United States) and Google Ireland Limited, as our operator. Google may process this information on servers outside South Africa, including in the United States and the European Union. We rely on Google's data processing terms, which include the European Union's standard contractual clauses, as described in the transfers section of our privacy notice. Google's own use is described in its privacy policy at policies.google.com/privacy.
How to change your choice
You can change your mind at any time. Choose Cookie settings at the foot of any page, or use the button below. Switching analytics off stops it at once and deletes the _ga and _ga_ cookies from your browser. Withdrawing your consent does not affect what was collected before you withdrew it.
If Cookie settings shows analytics as not in use, the website is not running analytics at present, so nothing is measured.
You can also block Google Analytics on every website with Google's browser add-on, available at tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout.
YouTube videos
Some pages include videos from YouTube. We embed them through YouTube's privacy-enhanced mode (youtube-nocookie.com), and the video is not loaded until you press play. Until then, no connection is made to YouTube and nothing is stored on your device by YouTube.
When you press play, your browser connects to YouTube, which is operated by Google. YouTube may then set its own cookies or use similar technologies, and may collect information such as your IP address and how you interact with the video. This is governed by Google's privacy policy, not ours. If you prefer to avoid this, do not play the video. You can watch it on YouTube directly instead, or contact us for the content in another format.
Links to other websites
Other websites we link to, including those of our funding partners and clients, have their own cookie and privacy policies. We are not responsible for them, and we recommend that you read them.
Consent and the law
The Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (POPIA) applies to cookies and similar technologies where they process personal information, and the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act, 2002 (ECTA) governs electronic communications such as this website. A cookie identifier linked to your browser may be personal information, so we use analytics cookies only with your consent, which you give by choosing Accept analytics and may withdraw at any time. The necessary items listed above are needed for features you use, stay on your device and are not used to track you, so we do not ask for consent to them.
When you choose to play a YouTube video, you are asking for that content, and YouTube's use of cookies is a matter between you and YouTube.
How to block or delete cookies in your browser
You can view, block and delete cookies and site storage in your browser settings at any time. The menu names vary between versions, but the settings are usually found here:
- Google Chrome: Settings, then Privacy and security, then Third-party cookies or Site settings
- Microsoft Edge: Settings, then Cookies and site permissions
- Mozilla Firefox: Settings, then Privacy and Security, then Cookies and Site Data
- Apple Safari (Mac): Settings, then Privacy, then Manage Website Data
- Safari on iPhone or iPad: Settings, then Safari, then Clear History and Website Data, or Advanced, then Website Data
- Chrome on Android: Settings, then Site settings, then Cookies
Closing the browser tab clears the session storage items described above. Using a private or incognito window prevents anything from being kept after you close it. Blocking all cookies means the site cannot remember your cookie choice, and blocking third-party cookies may stop embedded YouTube videos from playing.
Changes to this policy
We will update this policy if the way the website uses cookies or storage changes, and show the date of the latest version at the top. If a change affects what you agreed to, we will ask for your choice again.
Contact
Questions about this policy: sales@bsvision.co.za or 010 500 0909. See also our privacy notice, website terms of use and booking terms.