Cookie Policy

1. What cookies and similar technologies are

Cookies are small text files that websites can store in a browser. Similar technologies, including local storage, can remember information without using a traditional cookie. This policy uses “cookies” as a convenient general term where appropriate, while identifying the storage actually used by Guardemar.

2. What the current website uses

The current Guardemar application uses first-party local storage to remember your cookie preferences, and one optional analytics technology: Google Analytics 4 (measurement ID G-6T2MR6HYFF). It does not define marketing cookies, a Google Tag Manager container, Meta Pixel or advertising tags. Netlify provides hosting, security infrastructure and form processing, and technical requests may be handled as needed to deliver and protect the site.

The website also retrieves font resources from Google Fonts. This is a third-party network request used to display the site typography; it is not listed as an analytics or marketing cookie in the current implementation.

3. Strictly Necessary

Strictly Necessary technologies are required for essential website functions, security and remembering privacy choices. They cannot be switched off in the consent interface because the preference centre could not reliably remember a rejection or withdrawal without necessary storage.

Guardemar stores one local-storage record named guardemar_cookie_consent. It contains consent version 2, a necessary=true marker, your Analytics choice and the date and time when the preference was saved. It does not contain your name, email address or property details. The record remains until you clear site data, replace it with a new choice or a future material policy change requires a new consent version.

4. Analytics

Analytics is optional and off by default. Guardemar uses Google Analytics 4 with measurement ID G-6T2MR6HYFF, provided by Google Ireland Limited, to understand how many people visit the website, which pages and service areas are useful and which enquiry routes are used. It is not used for advertising, profiling or automated decision-making.

The Google tag is not requested and no analytics cookie is created until Analytics consent is given. When you allow the category, the tag is loaded and sets first-party cookies named _ga and _ga_6T2MR6HYFF to distinguish visits and sessions; these expire within two years unless you remove them sooner. Analytics storage is signalled as denied by default through Google consent mode, IP addresses are shortened by Google, and advertising and personalisation signals remain denied.

The site’s internal analytics event hook, which records actions such as opening the assessment form or using a contact link, is also only available when valid Analytics consent exists. Analytics is not loaded in the client portal or administration area.

5. Marketing and functional technologies

No marketing technology or non-essential functional storage is currently configured, so those categories are not shown in the preference centre. If they are added later, they must be off by default, blocked until the relevant choice is made, described here and accompanied by a consent-version review.

6. First-party and third-party technologies

The Guardemar consent record is first-party because it is stored by guardemar.com in your browser. Google Analytics cookies are also stored under the guardemar.com domain, but the measurement service behind them is operated by Google as a third-party provider. Other third-party technologies are supplied from another organisation’s systems: the external font request is supplied by Google, and Netlify operates the website delivery and form infrastructure. No marketing or advertising script is present in the current code.

7. Managing and withdrawing consent

On a first visit, you can Accept all, Reject optional or Manage preferences. Accept and reject controls have equal prominence, and optional categories are not pre-selected. Use Cookie Settings in the footer at any time to see the current choice, withdraw Analytics consent or accept it later.

When Analytics consent is withdrawn, Guardemar stops future optional analytics events, signals denied analytics storage to Google consent mode and deletes the named optional first-party cookies (_ga, _ga_6T2MR6HYFF, _gid). A website cannot always remove storage already placed by an independent third party, so provider and browser controls may also be needed. Google also publishes its own privacy information and browser opt-out tools.

8. Browser controls

Most browsers let you view, block and delete cookies or clear local site storage. Blocking all storage may prevent the website from remembering your privacy preference, so the banner may appear again. Browser controls are separate from the Guardemar preference centre.

9. Changes and contact

We update this policy when the technologies or purposes materially change. The controlled date above identifies the current version. Questions about cookies or privacy may be sent to info@guardemar.com. The data controller is Ownizo Unipessoal Lda, NIPC 517169029, trading as GUARDEMAR.