Cookie Policy

Cookie Policy

Last updated: October 2025

This Cookie Policy (“Cookie Policy”) describes how Direct Relief (“we”, “our”, “us”), and certain third parties, use cookies and similar technologies (collectively “Tracking Technologies”) when you interact with Direct Relief’s website and our online services (together, the “Services”), and your choices regarding our use of Tracking Technologies. These Tracking Technologies, stored on your device or browser, may be used to gain information stored on your device and collect your personal data to distinguish you from other visitors. This helps us to provide website functionality to you, customize your experience, analyze our web traffic, and improve our Services. This policy supplements the information provided in our website Privacy Policy.

You can change your settings for Tracking Technologies we use in our Services at any time in our preference center by clicking on Cookie Settings in our website footer.

We may change this policy from time to time, in which case we will update the “Last Updated” date at the top of this Cookies Policy.

1. What type of Tracking Technologies are used in our services?

We and our third party partners may deploy the following Tracking Technologies when you use our Services.

• Cookies. Cookies are text files that are stored on and uniquely identify your browser or device. Cookies improve your user experience, for example, by enabling our Services to recognize you when you re-visit, remember your preferences, and provide you with the ability to use customized features. Cookies are also used to make websites work in an efficient way and to ensure adverts you see online are relevant to you and your interests. You can find more information about cookies at allaboutcookies.org.
• Tracking Pixels and Web Beacons. Tracking Pixels and Web Beacons are used as part of our Services. We use these technologies to learn whether you have clicked on certain web content, to see how you interact with our Services, and to understand how often you view certain content, so that we can make our website more efficient and easier for you and others to use.
• Local storage. We also use local storage to store data on your device, such as the last time you visited a webpage, or to welcome you to our site. Depending on your browser, you can remove local storage when clearing your cache and cookies.

In addition to the cookies we use on this website, we may also use Tracking Technologies in the emails we send you. These enable us to understand whether you have opened the email and how you have interacted with it. If you have enabled images, Tracking Technologies will be set on your device and will also be set if you click on any link within the email.

We use both Persistent and Session Tracking Technologies. Persistent, or “Permanent,” Tracking Technologies stay on your browser until they are deleted or expire and can be used to recognize your device when you open your browser and browse the internet again. Session Tracking Technologies last until you close our website or your browser.

2. How do we use Tracking Technologies?

We use first-party and third-party Tracking Technologies. First-party Tracking Technologies are set directly by us, whereas third-party Tracking Technologies are set by a third party (such as analytics providers or our advertiser and business partners).

We use Tracking Technologies that perform the following functions:

• Strictly Necessary or Essential Tracking Technologies, which are essential to the functioning of our website and Services. They include, for example, Tracking Technologies that enable you to complete forms, display our content, and make donations. They also enable us to identify and prevent security risks, and may support us in complying with legal obligations. These Tracking Technologies cannot be turned off, as we cannot provide the Services without them.
• Functional Tracking Technologies, which allow us to remember choices you make and provide enhanced and personalized functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collecting feedback, and other third-party features.
• Analytics and Performance Tracking Technologies, which are used to understand how visitors interact with the website, including behavioral data and content engagement, and to understand key performance indexes of the website, which helps in delivering a better user experience for you and in maintaining, operating, and continually improving our Services.
• Advertisement Tracking Technologies, which we use to deliver a more personalized service, enable us to execute advertising campaigns, measure their effectiveness, and show you ads that are relevant to you. They are usually placed by our advertisers (for example, advertising networks) and provide insights about the people who see and interact with their ads, visit their websites or use their apps. This includes our ads on social media platforms. These Tracking Technologies may also share information through social media “share” or other similar features on our website, or when you engage with our content on or through a social media platform such as LinkedIn, Facebook, and X/Twitter. If you disable these Cookies, you may still see our ads on third-party websites or apps, but they will be less relevant to you. A guide to behavioral advertising and online privacy has been produced by the internet advertising industry and can be found at: youronlinechoices.eu.

Our third-party Tracking Technologies include services from Google Ads, Google Analytics, and Meta Pixel.  Please see their respective websites for additional information about their use of personal data.  Google provides additional information at the following link: Business Data Responsibility.  We may also use other service providers from time to time.

3. Changing your settings

We use Tracking Technologies when providing our Services to make sure you benefit from the best experience. Some of these Tracking Technologies are essential and we can’t provide our Services without them. Others are not essential; you can turn them off and have the right to choose whether or not to accept them. However, if you choose to refuse Tracking Technologies, you may not be able to use the full functionalities of our Services.

You can change your settings for the Tracking Technologies we use at any time by clicking on Cookie Settings in our website footer.

In addition to our Cookie Settings option, many browsers allow you to change your settings so that you can:

• See what Tracking Technologies are used on your device and/or browser and delete all non-essential Tracking Technologies on a collective basis.
• Block Tracking Technologies, including from particular websites/apps.
• Block all Tracking Technologies from being set.
• Delete all Tracking Technologies when you close your browser (although this means that any preference settings you have made on our Services may be lost).

For more information on how to manage your browser settings, please see below:

• Cookie settings in Internet Explorer
• Cookie settings in Edge
• Cookie settings in Firefox
• Cookie settings in Chrome
• Cookie settings in Safari

If you disable one or more Tracking Technologies, we will still use the information collected via these Tracking Technologies prior to your disabled preference being set; however, we will stop using the disabled Tracking Technologies to collect any further information.

Additional information regarding online ads

The Digital Advertising Alliance (“DAA”) offers tools for you to choose whether participating third parties may use your information for targeted advertising. You may have the option to opt out of seeing certain targeted online ads by visiting the DAA AdChoices Tool at youradchoices.com/control. European Economic Area (EEA) and United Kingdom users can visit the European Interactive Digital Advertising Alliance’s youronlinechoices.eu. Please note that this list will contain more networks than those used on our Services. Alternatively, you can opt out of certain advertising Tracking Technologies by visiting Cookie Settings in our website footer.

4. Contact us

If you have any questions about this Cookies Policy, you can send an email to our Data Protection Officer at privacy@directrelief.org.

For more information on how we process your personal data, including personal data collected via Tracking Technologies, please visit our website Privacy Policy.