Policy on cookies and similar technologies

This policy describes the use of cookies and other similar technologies by us, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, SA, German branch located at Neue Mainzer Straße 28, 60311 Frankfurt am Main (Germany) (hereinafter "BBVA"), as the data controller within the meaning of Art. 4 No. 7 GDPR (Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (General Data Protection Regulation)) provided on the website www.bbva.de/en/ and in the BBVA App. You can view and configure cookies or similar technologies by accessing the configuration panel here.

What are cookies or those technologies similar to cookies?

Cookies are small text files that are stored on your device (e.g. Cookies are small text files that are stored on your device (for example your laptop, smartphone or tablet) when you use our website or the BBVA App. They help us recognize your device – during your visit and also when you return later.

The term "cookies" that we are using here is to be understood in a broader sense and also includes other similar technologies (with or without data storage), such as local shared objects or flash cookies, web beacons, bugs, APIs (software that enables communication between applications), etc. In addition, the term "cookies" that we are referring to also includes the use of fingerprinting methods, in other words, methods for capturing your device's digital fingerprint, or technologies that allow us to access the unique identifier generated by the operating system on the device from which you access our app, or using a method like this to give your device its own individual fingerprint.

What are cookies used for?

We use our own cookies (so-called) first-party cookies) and third-party cookies (so-called third-party cookies) for very different purposes, such as recognizing you as a customer, saving your individual settings and immediately applying them during your next visit or use of the website or App, ensuring the security of our website and the BBVA App, obtaining information about your interests or the products you agreed upon via contract, creating measurements and statistics about the use of the website/BBVA App and the results of advertising campaigns, personalizing the content displayed to you, or improving the range of products or services we offer you.

Personal Data Protection

Some of the purposes for which cookies and similar technologies are used may involve the processing of personal data, in other words, when the user is identified by a name or an email address (for example, because they are a registered user), via the IP address or if unique identifiers are used, for example by encrypting your email address or reading the unique identifier assigned by your device, as well as their transfer to advertising platforms and their use to identify users, which involves the processing of personal data.

The section “Types of Cookies” explains these purposes more in detail, along with the different types of cookies. You can also view our privacy policy here to learn more about how we process your personal data.

Cookies are divided into the following categories based upon their purpose:

  • Technical cookies: These cookies enable the user to navigate a website, platform or application and use the various options or services available on them that are necessary for operating them and providing them, including those required for operating the website and providing its functions and services, such as controlling data traffic and data communication to ensure the website's stability and security, the BBVA App and services, as well as those used for fraud prevention purposes, identifying the session, determining the language for the content, accessing restricted areas, saving an order's elements, executing an order's purchase process, and managing the payment of the order. To count visits for the purpose of billing licenses for the software that powers the service (website, platform or BBVA App), or to use security features during navigation. Since technical cookies are essential for the website to function and are necessary for providing the website or the BBVA App, we do not require consent for storage and access, Sec. 25 para. 2 No. 2 TDDDG (Telecommunications and Digital Services Data Protection Act). Insofar as personal data are also processed, the legal basis is our legitimate interest as set out above, pursuant to Art. 6 (1) lit. f) GDPR. The collected information will be stored for a maximum period of 25 months, and the lifespan of these cookies or similar technologies is 13 months.
  • Preference and personalization cookies: These cookies make it possible to store information so that the user can access the service with certain characteristics, taking into account the individual settings they have created and with the help of these stored cookies. This category of cookies also includes those that can differentiate their experience from that of other users, such as through the content on the website or in the BBVA App, which is displayed according to browser type or region (for example, due to individual language settings). We only use these cookies with your prior consent in accordance with Sec. 25 para 1. 1 TDDDG or insofar as personal data are processed in this context, Art. 6 (1) lit. a) GDPR. 
  • Analytics or measurement cookies: These cookies allow the data controller to track and analyze the behavior of users of the websites to which they are linked, including quantifying the effectiveness and reach of advertisements and how long users stay on a page or section and what content they click on. The information collected with this type of cookie is used to measure the activity for websites, the BBVA App or platforms, in order to make improvements to the website, the BBVA App, the platforms and the advertisements based on analyses of the user usage data provided by the user of the service. We only use these cookies with your prior consent in accordance with Sec. 25 para 1. 1 TDDDG or insofar as personal data are processed in this context, Art. 6 (1) lit. a) GDPR.
  • Behavioral advertising cookies: These are cookies that store user behavior information that is obtained through continuously observing their browsing habits. In particular, click behavior, the time spent on a page, a section, or an area is stored and evaluated in order to better understand the user's interests. This allows for a specific profile to be created in order to display advertising on other websites and apps outside BBVA channels and to improve these advertisements so that they show users information that most closely matches their interests. We only use these cookies with your prior consent in accordance with Sec. 25 para 1. 1 TDDDG or insofar as personal data are processed in this context, Art. 6 (1) lit. a) GDPR. 
  • Cookies that enable the creation and sharing of unique identifiers: These are cookies that enable us to use unique identifiers that are created by encrypting your email address or by the identifier assigned by cookies or your device's operating system (the so-called advertising ID) when you access our app, to share with our advertising partners' advertising platforms. With your consent to the use of behavioral advertising cookies, you also give your consent to the creation, collection, use and sharing of your unique identifier or advertising ID. Our advertising partners use these unique identifiers or the advertising ID according to their respective cookie policies in order to develop and improve our commercial activities in their environments and on their platforms. We only use these cookies or technologies with your prior consent in accordance with Sec. 25 para 1. 1 TDDDG or insofar as personal data are processed in this context, Art. 6 (1) lit. a) GDPR.

Depending on their storage duration, cookies can be classified as follows:

  • Session cookies: This type of cookie is used to collect and store data while the user accesses a website. They are generally used to store information that is only of interest for the one-time provision and delivery of the services requested by the user (such as a list of purchased products) and are deleted again after the session ends (leaving the website/closing the browser window/the BBVA App).
  • Persistent cookies: These are cookies where the data remains stored on the end device and can be accessed and processed for a period of time defined by the cookie's controller. This can range from a few minutes to several years.

Depending on the authority that manages it:

  • Own cookies: These are cookies that are provided and managed by the controller and are sent to the user's terminal device (so-called first-party cookies).
  • Third-party cookies: These are cookies that are not provided and managed by the controller but by a third party and are sent to the user's terminal device. If cookies are provided by the publisher itself, but the information collected by them is processed and managed by a third party, they cannot be considered the publisher's own cookies if the third party uses them for its own purposes, such as for improving the services it offers or to provide services, such as advertising, for the benefit of other companies.

Which identifiers are used on the BBVA website or in the App?

  • Unique identifier: Within BBVA's environments, i.e., on the website or in the BBVA App, we may use a unique identifier if you have given us your consent. 

What is a "unique identifier"?

The unique identifier is a code that allows a user or device to be individually identified over a longer period of time and across different platforms and websites. It can be recognized across platforms. This identifier is crucial for personalizing ads, measuring their effectiveness and reach, and executing more precise segmentations.

We can obtain a "unique identifier" in several ways:

  • We convert your email address into an encrypted code (unique identifier) ​​and, provided you have given your consent, securely share this code with advertising platforms with which we have agreements. These platforms already have your email address stored in their systems (for example, because you provided it when registering for their services) and store it in the form of a similar code. If you have given this platform permission to use your data for advertising purposes, it will compare our code with the existing one as soon as it receives it. If the code matches, the platform recognizes that the user is also a BBVA customer, which enables us to offer our commercial or advertising activities on these advertising platforms, and to develop and improve them.
  • The email address we use is the one you provided when applying for a BBVA product (even if you did not complete the application) or, if you are already a customer, the one we have stored in our database.
  • We can also create the unique identifier based on the identifier that is assigned to you or your device through the cookies installed on your device, or, where applicable, through the advertising identifier for apps, which we will discuss in the following section.
  • We create this unique identifier as soon as we have your email address, and you have consented to the use of behavioral advertising cookies, as this consent also includes the creation, use and sharing of your unique identifier.

For which purposes do we use the unique identifier?

  • We use them to develop and improve our commercial or advertising activities on the advertising platforms with which we collaborate and share identifiers. By sharing this unique identifier, we can, for example, show you more relevant advertising from BBVA that is tailored to your interests and needs when you browse these platforms' websites or apps. At the same time, the unique identifier serves the purpose of preventing you from seeing advertising on the advertising platforms that does not interest you and of measuring the effectiveness and reach of our commercial activities on the advertising platforms. 

To whom do we pass on your unique identifier?

  • If you have given your consent, we will share your unique identifier with the advertising platforms we work with. You give this consent if you have agreed to the use of behavioral advertising cookies.

How long will the unique identifier be stored?

  • The unique identifiers that we create are saved and stored for the duration of the respective advertising campaign and in any case for a maximum of 90 days after the user's last visit to the BBVA App or the website. 
  • After this period, the aforementioned identifiers will be deleted, without prejudice to BBVA's right to retain the technical evidence of your consent for a maximum of 3 years in accordance with the statutory limitation periods set out in the data protection regulations.
  • The cookie or similar technology used to create the unique identifier has a maximum lifespan of 13 months. After this period expires, your consent will be obtained again to generate and use a new unique identifier.

Advertising ID for apps

Within the BBVA App we may use an "advertising ID" for apps with your consent. We would access this and read certain information relating to this "advertising ID." 

What is the "advertising ID for apps," and what is it used for?

  • The advertising ID for apps is a unique code that your cellphone's operating system assigns to your mobile device. It works like a cookie, but in mobile environments (in apps). If you consent to the use of cookies or similar tracking technologies when accessing our app, we will also use the advertising ID for apps for analysis and behavioral advertising purposes. Further information about the purposes for which we use the advertising ID can be found in the next section.
  • If you have consented to the creation and sharing of unique identifiers, the advertising ID for apps can be used as a unique identifier, as previously described in the “unique identifier” section.

For what purposes do we use the advertising ID for apps?

Advertising:

  • It allows third-party apps to show you advertisements that are, based on your activities, more relevant to you and tailored to your interests.
  • This identifier does not directly reveal your name or personal data, however, it does help to create an advertising profile based on your interests, such as the type of app you use, your language settings, websites you visit (including the topics covered on those websites), or your approximate location.

Analysis and measurement:

  • This identifier enables cross-website and cross-platform analysis of how you interact with BBVA ads in order to improve advertising campaigns and tailor them to your interests and needs, personalize advertising displayed in other apps and adapt it to your interests and needs, and measure the effectiveness, reach, and success of the campaign.

With whom do we share your app advertising ID?

  • When we use the app advertising ID as a unique identifier, we share it with the advertising platforms we work with for the purposes mentioned above once we have received your consent.

How long is the app advertising ID stored?

  • The app advertising ID is not permanent; you can reset or disable it in your device settings.
  • Nevertheless, if the app advertising ID is used as a unique identifier, it will be stored for the duration of the relevant advertising campaign and in any case for a maximum of 90 days after the user's last interaction with the BBVA App. After this period, the aforementioned identifiers will be deleted, without prejudice to BBVA's right to retain the technical evidence of your consent for a maximum of 3 years in accordance with the statutory limitation periods set out in the data protection regulations.
  • The cookie or similar technology used to access the advertising ID has a maximum lifespan of 13 months. After this period expires, your consent will be requested again in order to regain access to the ID.

When you use our website and the BBVA App, we ask for your explicit consent to the use and storage of cookies on your device, your device's advertising ID, the encrypted unique identifier (your email address in an encrypted code), and ask that you allow access to the information stored in the cookies. This is for the advertising, analysis, and measurement purposes described above.

Please note the following:

  • The above provisions do not apply in cases where cookies are necessary for navigating on the terminal device and/or for providing the service requested by the user (technical cookies).
  • Technical cookies are exempt from the requirements set out in Sec. 25 Para. Exempt from the obligations to obtain consent set out in Article 1 of the TDDDG (see definition of technical cookies).

Regarding the advertising ID, it is important to know that:

  • If you give us your consent for all or some of the above-mentioned purposes, we may use the advertising ID (if you have enabled it in your cell device settings) and the encrypted unique identifier (your email address converted into an encrypted code, if you have provided it to us) for the purposes for which you have given your consent.
  • If you have disabled the advertising ID in your device settings, we cannot access or process it, even if you have given us your consent. This is because the operating system itself blocks its use. In this case, we cannot use the ID on this device to personalize the ads or track advertising, and as a result cannot show you ads tailored to your interests and needs.

You can change or withdraw your consent to the use of cookies or similar technologies and to the creation and sharing of your unique identifier at any time with effect for the future, without affecting the lawfulness of the processing carried out as a result of your consent before you change or withdraw it. Changing or withdrawing your consent is possible in the "Privacy and Data" section, which is permanently available in the BBVA App menu, or via the settings field, which is permanently available via the link at the beginning of the cookie policy. In addition, you can enable or disable the use of the "advertising ID for apps" in your cellphone's settings. If you have an Android, you can reset your advertising ID or prevent it from being shared by managing it via the following path on your device: “Settings” > “Security and Privacy” > “Privacy Controls” > “Advertising.” We store your authorized selection for a maximum of 24 months and will ask you to update your consent regularly after this period. If, after receiving your consent, changes occur to the cookies, their purposes, or the third-party providers, we will also ask for your renewed consent. You can also delete third-party cookies as well as cookies used by us (first-party cookies) via your browser options or via the system offered by the third-party provider itself. With regard to cookies, you can in any case allow, block, or delete cookies at any time, as well as delete your browser data (including cookies) via the browser installed on your device. Please refer to your browser's options and instructions:

Disabling all cookies will not affect navigation on the website or in the App, but it may affect your user experience.

Some cookies may process personal data. This means that you will be identified, for example, by your name, email address (for example, when registering) or IP address. This also includes unique identifiers such as advertising IDs that can recognize and track you. You can find more information on how we process your personal data here in our Privacy Policy.

This cookie policy may be amended if required by applicable legislation or if the type of cookies or other similar technologies that we use changes.

Latest version: 2026.