Data Privacy and Customer Information Cookies and Analytics
Videobot does not use traditional cookies or Local Storage. For technical operations, Videobot’s embedded functionality stores some values in Session Storage, meaning the information is automatically deleted when the browser or tab is closed. This allows Videobot to recognize locally if it has already been shown to a visitor during the session and adjust its behavior accordingly. Cookies are not used to identify users, and the stored data is not transmitted. Appendix 1 provides a detailed description of the values used.
Traficom (The Finnish inspection authority on privacy) also defines cookie-like technologies, subject to the same restrictions as traditional cookies. These include, for example, API calls that send tracking data. Videobot transmits data about its functions to its servers, for instance, when a video is played or a feature within it is used. However, this data is entirely anonymized. No metadata about the user or browser is transmitted, and there is no session-based identifier, even temporarily, linking events.
Thus, Videobot’s built-in analytics cannot compile user-identifiable profiles, nor can it constitute personal data. Technically, it can be considered data comparable to performance or operational measurements. Appendix 2 contains an example of the transmitted analytics. Videobot’s interpretation of Traficom’s guidelines is that the service’s internal analytics does not require separate cookie consent from the user. However, the client can disable Videobot’s analytics until the end-user provides cookie consent if desired.
Data Retention & GDPR
Videobot’s service is fully GDPR-compliant, and it also holds SOC 2 Type 1 and Type 2 certifications. Videobot’s databases are hosted in Amazon Web Services’ (AWS) eu-west-1 region, located in Ireland. All information related to service operations, such as users, settings, and analytics, is stored within the EU/EEA region.
To ensure service quality for end-users, Videobot uses Cloudflare’s Content Delivery Network (CDN), which operates globally. The contracts between this provider and Videobot include standard contractual clauses (SCC) in compliance with GDPR.
Impact on Page Load Speed
A typical Videobot installation on a website includes a script that automatically creates a floating preview video widget within the page. The actual interactive content and video are hosted on Videobot’s servers and displayed on the host page through an iframe element. While any addition may impact page load speed, it’s important to note that:
- The script used for embedding Videobot typically loads last, after the rest of the page is already visible and usable.
- The loaded source code is divided into modules that are only fetched as needed.
- The video added to the service is automatically converted into a streamable format, so full videos are not unnecessarily loaded.
- Each video offers three quality levels, displayed based on the user’s connection speed.
- Videobot’s server portion uses server-side rendering (SSR), reducing load on the user’s end.
- We use Cloudflare’s CDN, which keeps latency low worldwide.
Videobot, based on its size and requests, is lighter than a typical YouTube embed. A comparison of the data transferred by two example embeds is shown in Appendix 3.
Appendices
Appendix 1. sessionStorage Keys Used
Below are the sessionStorage keys stored by Videobot in the browser, including their types and descriptions.
The “bot id” variable refers to a unique identifier for the specific Videobot, which is the same for each visitor.
| Name | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
vb_sessionEventLogged_<bot_id> | bool | Indicates if this session has been counted once in Videobot’s analytics |
vb_sessionSliderEventLogged_<bot_id> | bool | Same as above, but for Slider or Stories-type embeds |
vb_hasAutoOpened_<bot_id> | bool | Indicates if Videobot has already opened automatically once, if enabled |
vb_loopCount_<bot_id> | integer | Number of times the widget’s video has automatically played if enabled |
Appendix 2. Example of Transmitted Analytics
Examples of analytics events transmitted.
The ID values used are configuration identifiers for the specific Videobot and are not linked to the browser or user.
| Timestamp | Event | Value | Type | Source | Channel | Bot id | Video id | Widget id |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-10-04 07:31:59.624 | played | 1 | count | example.com | widget | <id> | <id> | <id> |
| 2024-10-04 07:32:04.642 | watched | 4954 | duration_ms | example.com | widget | <id> | <id> | <id> |
Appendix 3. Data Transferred by Two Embeds
Performance measurement of two embeds on the same site.
The first figure represents the amount of compressed, i.e., transferred, data, with the uncompressed data size in parentheses.
| Name | HTML | CSS | JS |
|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube | 43KB (102KB) | 49KB (394KB) | 770KB (2.9MB) |
| Videobot | 12.8KB (61.6KB) | - | 140KB (502KB) |