In response to a request from EU regulators, Google has updated its user consent policy, and website owners need to ensure compliance by 30 September. Mason Hayes & Curran explains why and how.
Web users may have noticed an increase in cookie consent banners across the internet in recent weeks. This results from Google’s new EU user consent policy.
The policy, accessible here, requires website publishers who use Google cookies to obtain their European site visitors’ consent before dropping and reading cookies.
While the law in this area hasn’t changed recently, the regulatory atmosphere has.
Google’s new website cookies policy
European privacy regulators are increasingly focusing on US-based organisations that target EU users. In this climate, EU data protection authorities requested changes to the way Google obtains end-user consents. The changes to its consent policy are a direct result of Google’s engagement with regulators.
In its FAQ, Google states: “The Article 29 Working Party, an umbrella body that comprises representatives of all EU data protection authorities, has requested some changes to current practices for obtaining end user consents. We understand these principles will be applied across the industry. It has always been Google’s policy to comply with privacy laws, so we’ve agreed to make certain changes affecting our own products and partners using Google products.”
The new user consent policy will not only impact Google-owned websites but also ad publishers who are using Google services such as AdSense, DoubleClick for Publishers and DoubleClick AdExchange.
