As a website owner, you unfortunately quickly break the law.
For example, do you have a YouTube video on your website that places cookies? Then you place commercial tracking cookies.
There is a lot to do with the current Cookie legislation and the possible amendment of the law. As a website owner, you quickly break the law. For example, do you have YouTube videos on your website that place a tracking cookie? And do you not ask permission from visitors for this? Then you are strictly speaking in violation.
Why cookie legislation?
By placing cookies, organizations can link all our actions on the Internet to our personal data. That sounds like spying, and that is actually a bit. Because these practices got wildly out of hand and website visitors were completely unaware that they were being tracked, the cookie legislation came into effect on 5 June 2012. With this law, governments want to restrict tracing via cookies.
If you now place cookies to follow people, you must ask for permission. The law passed somewhat, causing almost all websites to be in violation. Enforcement of the law was, therefore, challenging, and visiting sites did not become more pleasant. That is why an update of the law had to be made.
Since February 2015, it is no longer mandatory to allow visitors to agree to place cookies when you use cookies for statistical systems such as Google Analytics. Only for commercial cookies that aim to track people, it is still mandatory to request approval.
What is the best thing to do now?
First, check what kind of cookies you place. This can be done in many different ways. However, one of the simplest is to look within your browser at the set cookies.
This way, you can view the cookies that a website places via your Chrome browser.
Usually, you only see functional cookies and cookies for a statistical system such as Google Analytics. If so, you still have to check the settings in Google Analytics. For example, you must indicate that the statistics may not be passed on to third parties.
You can also switch to a statistics system that you install and manage yourself. Piwik is an open-source statistics system that you can download for free.
Do you still see other cookies from third parties? For example, because you use a social sharing tool, embed a youtube video, or advertise on your website? Then you usually do not know which data is stored off your visitors. So, according to the old and new cookie legislation, you must ask the visitors for approval before placing these cookies.
Strictly speaking, it is not sufficient to make a notification that you are placing cookies. No cookies may be placed before you receive this approval from the visitor.
Technically, this is quite difficult because frequently used website systems such as Joomla, Drupal, and WordPress cannot block the tracking cookies placed by, for example, a YouTube video. That is why many websites that place tracking cookies will place a cookie wall. You must either agree to the placing of cookies, or you cannot access the website.
Furthermore, it is always wise as an organization or company to indicate what you do with the data you receive from customers in a privacy statement. It is best to include a link in your footer to a page with this privacy statement.
Summarizing:
- Map out what kind of cookies your websites place.
- If necessary, switch to alternative systems, techniques, or services that do not place cookies.
- Can’t live without it? Then request approval from the visitor.
- Draw up a privacy statement and place a link to it in the footer of your website.
When you request data from customers or users via your website, via a contact form, for example, it is wise to also take the security of this data into account. Also read: How do you prevent a data breach as an organization.
The future?
The question is whether the cookie legislation will continue to exist in its current form. There is a lot of resistance to the unenforceable law, which is particularly irritating. It is therefore not without reason that the advisory body Actual advised Minister Kamp of Economic Affairs in October 2016 to work towards a more effective and less burdensome solution at the European level.
Do you have questions or comments about current or new cookie legislation? I am happy to read and answer them below in the comment section.