This Cookies Policy explains how Plainview Ventures Limited trading as Black Flag Alert uses cookies and similar technologies on blackflagalert.com. It supplements our Privacy Policy.
About this notice
We use cookies and similar technologies in line with the UK Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR) and the UK GDPR. Where consent is required, we will only set non-essential cookies if you have given us clear, affirmative consent.
What are cookies?
A cookie is a small text file that a website stores on your device when you visit it. Cookies are widely used to make websites work, or to work more efficiently, as well as to provide information to the website's owners. We also use technologies that are not strictly cookies (such as localStorage and pixel-based tracking), but we treat them under the same rules.
Cookies can be:
- First-party — set by the site you are visiting; or third-party — set by another organisation whose service is embedded.
- Session — deleted when you close your browser; or persistent — stored for a specified period.
Cookies we use
The following is a complete list of cookies and similar technologies we use, by category. We review this list quarterly.
Strictly necessary
These cookies are essential for the platform to function. You cannot opt out of them. They are set on the basis of the "strictly necessary" exemption under PECR Regulation 6(4).
| Name | Purpose | Duration | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
bfa_session | Maintains your sign-in session. | Session | First-party |
bfa_csrf | Anti-CSRF token for form submissions. | Session | First-party |
bfa_consent | Records your cookie preferences. | 12 months | First-party |
bfa_locale | Remembers your preferred locale and timezone. | 12 months | First-party |
Analytics
These cookies help us understand how people use the platform so we can improve it. They are only set with your consent.
| Name | Purpose | Duration | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
_pa_id | Aggregate page-view analytics (Plausible). | 24 hours | First-party |
bfa_perf | Performance and error sampling (Sentry). | 7 days | First-party |
Functional
These cookies enable optional convenience features. They are only set with your consent.
| Name | Purpose | Duration | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
bfa_recent | Remembers your recently viewed companies. | 30 days | First-party |
bfa_layout | Remembers UI preferences (e.g. expanded ratios). | 90 days | First-party |
We do not use advertising or cross-site tracking cookies. We do not share cookie-derived identifiers with third-party advertising networks.
Manage your preferences
Use the controls below to update your preferences. Your choices are saved in the bfa_consent cookie and applied across the platform. Strictly necessary cookies are always on.
Browser controls
Most browsers let you manage cookies through their settings. You can typically: see what cookies are stored, block specific or all cookies, delete cookies on close, and refuse cookies from specific sites. Blocking strictly necessary cookies will prevent sign-in and may break the Service.
Guidance for popular browsers:
Third-party cookies
We do not embed any third-party advertising, social media, or behavioural tracking scripts on the platform. Our analytics provider (Plausible) is privacy-focused and does not use cross-site identifiers. Our error monitor (Sentry) is configured to scrub personal data before transmission.
If you click a link to an external site (for example to Companies House or the ICO), that site's own cookie policy applies. We are not responsible for third-party cookie practices.
Do Not Track
We honour the Do Not Track ("DNT") signal sent by some browsers. If your browser sends DNT: 1, we will not set any non-essential cookies, regardless of your prior preferences, for the duration of that session.
Changes to this policy
We will revise this notice whenever the cookies we use change, or at least once per quarter. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page reflects when the notice was last revised. Material changes may trigger a refreshed consent prompt.
Contact
If you have questions about how we use cookies, please contact:
- Email: [email protected]
- Post: Data Protection, Plainview Ventures Limited t/a Black Flag Alert, 15-17 Westmill Road, Ware, England, SG12 0EF
- General: contact form