Category: Cookies
22. August 2022
On August 9th, 2022, the Austrian NGO noyb announced on its website that it had lodged over 200 complaints with 18 supervisory authorities against several websites that have the cookie banner software “OneTrust” in use.
noyb claims that those banners are designed in a way that nudges the user into clicking the accept button.
According to noyb’s legal analysis, websites that use these cookie banners are neither in conformity with the ePrivacy Directive nor with the GDPR. Further noyb argues: “Deceptive cookie banner designs try to force a user’s agreement by making it insanely burdensome to decline cookies. The GDPR actually requires a fair yes/no choice, not crazy click-marathons.”
It is important to highlight that the complaints were only lodged against companies hosting these websites and using possibly unlawful cookie banners which did not respond to noyb’s emails. Interestingly enough, even companies who have not been contacted by noyb have proceeded, in the mean-time, to update their cookies in accordance with a guiding document provided by noyb.
In response to noyb’s multiple complaints in relation to cookie banners, the EDPB decided to establish a task force in September 2021.
22. April 2022
After being hit with a €150 million fine by France’s data protection agency CNIL earlier in the year for making the process of rejecting cookies unnecessarily confusing and convoluted for users, Google has added a new “Reject All” button to the cookie consent banners that have become ubiquitous on websites in Europe. Users visiting Search and YouTube in Europe while signed out or in incognito mode will soon see an updated cookie dialogue with reject all and accept all buttons.
Previously, users only had two options: “I accept” and “personalize.” While this allowed users to accept all cookies with a single click, they had to navigate through various menus and options if they wanted to reject all cookies. “This update, which began rolling out earlier this month on YouTube, will provide you with equal “Reject All” and “Accept All” buttons on the first screen in your preferred language,” wrote Google product manager Sammit Adhya in a blog post.
According to Google they have kicked off the rollout of the new cookie banner in France and will be extending the change to all Google users in Europe, the U.K., and Switzerland soon.
Google’s plan to include a “Reject All” button on cookie banners after its existing policy violated EU law was also welcomed by Hamburg’s Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information Thomas Fuchs during a presentation of his 2021 activity report.
But the introduction of the “Reject All” button is likely to be only an interim solution because the US giant already presented far-reaching plans at the end of January to altogether remove Google cookies from third-party providers by 2023.
Instead of cookies, the internet giant wants to rely on in-house tracking technology for the Google Privacy Sandbox project.
28. March 2022
In a long-awaited decision on the Transparency and Consent Framework (TCF), the Belgian data protection authority APD concludes that this technical standard, which advertisers use to collect consent for targeted advertising on the Internet, does not comply with the principles of legality and fairness. Accordingly, it violates the GDPR.
The ADP’s decision is aligned with other European data protection authorities and has consequences for cookie banners and behavioral online advertising in the EU. The advertising association IAB Europe, which develops and operates the TCF system, must now delete the personal data collected in this way and pay a fine of 250,000 euros. In addition, conditions have been determined for the advertising industry under which the TCF may continue to be used at all.
Almost all companies, including advertising companies such as Google or Amazon, use the mechanism to pass on users’ presumed consent to the processing of their personal data for personalized advertising purposes. This decision will have a major impact on the protection of users’ personal data. This is also confirmed by Hielke Hijmans from APD.
The basic structure of the targeted advertising system is that each visit to a participating website triggers an auction among the providers of advertisements. Based on the desired prices and the user’s data profile, among other things, a decision is made in milliseconds as to which advertisements she will see. For this real-time bidding (RTB) to work, the advertising companies collect data to compile target groups for ads.
If users accept cookies or do not object that the use of their data is in the legitimate interest of the provider, the TCF generates a so-called TC string, which contains information about consent decisions. This identifier forms the basis for the creation of individual profiles and for the auctions in which advertising spaces and, with them, the attention of the desired target group are auctioned off, and is forwarded to partners in the OpenRTB system.
According to the authority, the TC strings already constitute personal data because they enable users to be identified with the IP address and the cookies set by the TCF. In addition, IAB Europe is said to be jointly legally responsible for any data processing via the framework, although IAB Europe has not positioned itself as a data processor, only as a provider of a standard.
The TCF envisions advertising providers invoking a “legitimate interest” in data collection in cookie banners that pop up all the time, rather than asking for consent. This would have to be prohibited, for example, for it to be lawful. The principles of privacy by design and by default are also violated, since consent is literally tricked by design tricks, the data flows are not manageable, and revocation of consent is hardly possible.
24. March 2022
On March 16, 2022, Google announced the launch of its new analytics solution, “Google Analytics 4”. Among other things, “Google Analytics 4” aims to address the most recent data protection developments regarding the use of analytical cookies and the transfers tied to such processing.
The announcement of this new launch comes following 101 complaints made by the non-governmental organization None of Your Business (NOYB) complaints with 30 EEA countries’ data protection authorities (DPA). Assessing the data transfer from the EU to the US after the Schrems II decision of the CJEU for the use of Google Analytics, the French and Austrian DPAs ruled that the transfer of EU personal data from the EU to the U.S. through the use of the Google Analytics cookies is unlawful under the GDPR.
In the press release, Google states that “Google Analytics 4 is designed with privacy at its core to provide a better experience for both our customers and their users. It helps businesses meet evolving needs and user expectations, with more comprehensive and granular controls for data collection and usage.”
However, the most important change that the launch of “Google Analytics 4” will have on the processing of personal data is that it will no longer store users’ IP addresses. This will limit the data processing and resulting transfers that Google Analytics was under scrutiny for in the EU, however it is unclear at this point if the EU DPAs will change their opinion on the use of Google Analytics with this new version.
According to the press release, the current Google Analytics will be suspended starting July 2023, and Google is recommending companies to move onto “Google Analytics 4” as soon as possible.
22. February 2022
The Norwegian Data Protection Authority (DPA), Datatilsynet, has reached out to the Ministry of Local Government and District Affairs in a letter emphasizing the requirement of tightening cookie regulations in Norway.
This letter comes amid voices of consulting committees to delay the proposed tightened cookie regulations which have been on open consultation in Norway since the end of last year.
In the letter, the Datatilsynet points out the importance of strengthened cookie laws, specifically regarding the manner of obtaining consent and the design of the consent banners, which “are designed in ways that influence users to consent by making it more cumbersome and time consuming to not consent”.
The letter also references the French data protection authority’s decisions to fine Google €150 million and Facebook €60 million for inadequately facilitating refusal of cookies, as issued on 31 December 2021, and clearly outlined that in contrast to the practices for which Google and Facebook had been fined in France, the cookie practices would hardly have been considered problematic under the Norwegian cookie regulations, where illusory consents are allowed through pre-set browser settings.
Senior Legal Advisor Anders Obrestad stated that “these cases illustrate how unsustainable the current regulation of cookies and similar sports technologies in Norway are for the privacy of internet users”.
The Norwegian DPA hopes to be able to stop any delay in the strengthening of cookie regulations, as well as emphasize the importance of valid consent of internet users.
14. February 2022
On 10th February 2022, the French Data Protection Authority Commission Nationale de l’Informatique et des Libertés (CNIL) has pronounced the use of Google Analytics on European websites to not be in line with the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and has ordered the website owner to comply with the requirements of the GDPR within a month’s time.
The CNIL judged this decision in regard to several complaints maybe by the NOYB association concerning the transfer to the USA of personal data collected during visits to websites using Google Analytics. All in all, NOYB filed 101 complaints against data controllers allegedly transferring personal data to the USA in all of the 27 EU Member States and the three further states of European Economic Area (EEA).
Only two weeks ago, the Austrian Data Protection Authority (ADPA) made a similar decision, stating that the use of Google Analytics was in violation of the GDPR.
Regarding the French decision, the CNIL concluded that transfers to the United States are currently not sufficiently regulated. In the absence of an adequacy decision concerning transfers to the USA, the transfer of data can only take place if appropriate guarantees are provided for this data flow. However, while Google has adopted additional measures to regulate data transfers in the context of the Google Analytics functionality, the CNIL deemed that those measures are not sufficient to exclude the accessibility of the personal data for US intelligence services. This would result in “a risk for French website users who use this service and whose data is exported”.
The CNIL stated therefore that “the data of Internet users is thus transferred to the United States in violation of Articles 44 et seq. of the GDPR. The CNIL therefore ordered the website manager to bring this processing into compliance with the GDPR, if necessary by ceasing to use the Google Analytics functionality (under the current conditions) or by using a tool that does not involve a transfer outside the EU. The website operator in question has one month to comply.”
The CNIL has also given advice regarding website audience measurement and analysis services. For these purposes, the CNIL recommended that these tools should only be used to produce anonymous statistical data. This would allow for an exemption as the aggregated data would not be considered “personal” data and therefore not fall under the scope of the GDPR and the requirements for consent, if the data controller ensures that there are no illegal transfers.
16. December 2021
France’s data protection authority, the Commission nationale de l’informatique et des libertés (CNIL), has published a guidance on the use of alternatives to third-party cookies.
The guidance aims to highlight that there are other ways to track users online than through third-party cookies, and that it is important to apply data protection principles to new technologies with tracking ability.
In the guidance, the CNIL gives an overview on what cookies are and the difference between first-party and third-party cookies, as well as the meaning of the two for personalized advertisement targeting.
It also highlights consent management and collection as being the key role to ensure a data protection compliant online tracking culture for new tracking methods and technologies. Further, the guidance also emphasizes that consent is not the only important requirement. In addition, online tracking and targeting methods should ensure that users keep control of their data and that all data subject rights are allowed and facilitated.
In light of this, the CNIL has gone ahead and published a guide for developers to help outline how to implement data protection compliant third-party cookies and other tracers in order to sensibilize people that are part of the implementation process as to how to stay compliant.
However, the CNIL also issued about 60 cookie compliance notices and 30 new orders to organizations for not offering users a data protection compliant ability to refuse cookies.
The CNIL has stepped up efforts to tackle cookie management and consent in order to ensure the rights and freedom of the data subjects in relation to their personal data online are kept safe. It has made clear that cookies are its main focus for the upcoming year, and that it will continue to hold companies liable for their insufficient data protection implementation.
5. October 2021
On September 27, 2021, the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) announced that it has established a “Cookie Banner” taskforce in order to coordinate the complaints and corresponding responses filed with several EU data protection authorities (DPA) by the non-governmental organization None of Your Business (NOYB) in relation to website cookie banners.
In May 2021 NOYB sent over 500 draft and formal complaints to companies residing in the EU regarding the use of their cookie banners. The complaints seem to focus on the absence of a “reject all” button on most of the websites as well as the way cookie banners use deceptive design in order to get data subjects to consent to the use of non-essential cookies. Another regular complaint is the difficulty for refusing cookies, as opposed to the simple way of consenting to them.
The EDPB stated that “this taskforce was established in accordance with Art. 70 (1) (u) GDPR and aims to promote cooperation, information sharing and best practices between the DPAs”. The taskforce is meant to exchange views on legal analysis and possible infringements, provide support to activities on the national levels and streamline communication.
25. August 2021
Privacy Activist Max Schrems’ data protection organization noyb (an acronym for “none of your business”) announced on August 13th, 2021, they filed complaints against the cookie paywalls of seven major German and Austrian news websites. In the statement, they question whether consent can be “voluntarily” given if you have to pay to keep your data.
An increasing amount of websites asks their users to either agree to data being passed on to hundreds of tracking companies (which generates a few cents of revenue for the website) or take out a subscription (for up to € 80 per year). Can consent be considered “freely given” if the alternative is to pay 10, 20 or 100 times the market price of your data to keep it to yourself?
With these paywalls, the user must decide whether to agree to the use of his or her own data for advertising purposes or to enter into a paid subscription with the respective publisher. However, personal data may only be processed if there is a legal basis for doing so. Such a legal basis may arise, for example, from Article 6 (1) (a) of the GDPR, if the data subject has given his or her consent to this processing. Such consent must be “freely given”. According to Rectical 42, sentence 5, “consent is not regarded as freely given if the data subject has no genuine or free choice or is unable to refuse or withdraw consent without detriment.” noyb is of the opinion that the paywall solution lacks the necessary voluntariness for consent and thus also lacks a legal basis according to Art. 6 (1) a) DSGVO.
Art. 7 (4) GDPR demands, “when assessing whether consent is freely given, utmost account shall be taken of whether, inter alia, the performance of a contract, including the provision of a service, is conditional on consent to the processing of personal data that is not necessary for the performance of that contract.”
In contrast, in a decision on November 30th, 2018, the Austrian data protection authority did not see a violation of the GDPR in a paywall system, as the data subject receives a recognizable benefit, and expressed that the decision was thus voluntary after all.
Accordingly, users’ personal data could be considered a “means of payment” with which they pay for a paid subscription instead of a monetary benefit. Consent to data processing would thus be necessary for fulfillment, as it represents the quid pro quo the data subject, in other words, the purchase price. How the responsible data protection authorities will ultimately decide remains to be seen.
These complaints by noyb represent the organization’s second major campaign this month. On August 10, they have already filed 422 formal complaints with 10 European regulators based on inadequate cookie banners.
7. April 2021
Starting from April 1st, 2021, the French supervisory authority the Commission Nationale de l’Informatique et des Libertés (CNIL) is planning on starting its enforcement of Ad Tracker usage across the internet.
Following its Ad Tracker Guideline, the CNIL gave companies a time frame to adjust ad tracker usage and ensure compliance with the Guideline as well as the GDPR. This chance for the companies to adjust their ad tracker usage has ended on March 31st, 2021.
The new rules on cookies and ad trackers mainly revolve around the chance for the user to give active, free and informed consent. User consent for advertising cookies must be granted by a “clear and positive act”. This encompasses actions such as clicking an “I accept” button and no longer can be agreed to by simply continuing to use the website.
In addition, cookie banners must not only give the option to accept, they also have to give the option to reject. The act to reject cookie has to be as simple and easy as the act to accept cookies. Referring to “Cookie Options” is no longer a valid form of rejection, as it makes the user have to go through an extra step which may dissuade them from rejecting cookies. A valid option remains rejecting cookies by closing the Cookie Banner, but it has to be ensured that unless the cookies are indeed accepted, none but the essential cookies are activated.
Lastly, the Cookie Banner has to give a short information on the usage of the cookies. The CNIL’s Guideline allows for a more detailed information to be linked in the Cookie Banner, however companies should also give a short information in the Cookie Banner in order to be able to obtain “informed” consent.
At the beginning of March, the CNIL announced that “compliance with the rules applicable to cookies and other trackers” would be one of its three priorities for 2021, along with cybersecurity and the protection of health data. In a first act to follow that goal, the CNIL will now begin to conduct checks to ensure websites are in compliance with advertising tracker guidelines.
It is expected that companies that did not adjust their cookie and ad tracker usages will face fines according to the level of lacking compliance.
