1. Why USC uses cookies and similar technologies
Cookies, local storage, pixels, web beacons, IP addresses and similar technologies help USC operate pages, remember preferences, measure traffic, detect fraud and deliver advertising.
2. Technology categories
Necessary and security
Used for core site operation, fraud prevention, load balancing, consent state and security.
Analytics and performance
Used to understand page performance, navigation and aggregate usage.
Advertising
Used to serve, measure and limit advertising and, where permitted, personalize ads.
Preferences
Used to remember nonessential settings selected by the visitor.
3. Google AdSense and third-party advertising
Third-party vendors, including Google, use cookies to serve ads based on a visitor’s prior visits to USC or other websites. Google’s advertising cookies enable Google and its partners to serve ads based on visits to USC and other sites. Third-party vendors may also place or read cookies or use web beacons and IP addresses as a result of ad serving.
Users may opt out of personalized advertising through Google Ads Settings. USC should also identify other ad vendors used in production and provide available opt-out information.
4. Sensitive product-flow boundaries
USC’s production implementation should disable advertising tags and unnecessary behavioral tracking on sensitive product-request pages, including SSN, bank-information, consent, processing and personalized-result screens. USC should not pass personal information that an advertising platform could recognize as personally identifiable information, and should not build personalized-ad audiences from negative financial status or detailed application data.
5. Managing choices
Use the site consent controls where available, your browser settings, Google Ads Settings and the USC Privacy Choices page. In regions where Google requires it, USC should use a Google-certified consent-management platform for personalized advertising.