The idea of a cookie-free society is gaining popularity as the digital environment develops. The use of conventional cookies for monitoring and targeting is being contested in light of rising concerns about users’ personal information privacy and security. Despite this shift, cookie banners remain an important part of the online experience. In the upcoming year 2024, Google Chrome will ban third-party cookies on its chrome browser.
In this article, we’ll discuss in detail why a cookie banner is still necessary. We will examine why cookie banners are still useful in a cookieless environment, including for acquiring user permission, meeting data protection rules, and investigating alternative tracking techniques.
Cookieless world
A cookieless world is a digital environment in which the use of typical cookies for monitoring and targeting is severely restricted or removed. Websites place tiny text files known as cookies on a user’s device in order to collect information and customize their time spent online. However, regulations and technical advancements affecting the use of cookies have increased in response to concerns about user privacy, data protection, and tracking activities.
In a world without cookies, other tracking technologies like browser fingerprinting and local storage may be utilized to acquire data. The shift away from cookies is meant to increase user privacy, provide users more agency over their data, and meet data protection standards. It pushes businesses to find ways to monitor and customize user experiences without using cookies.
First-party and third-party cookies:
First-party cookies are those that the website you are currently visiting creates and sets. They’re made to improve the site’s usability in certain ways. Typical data saved by first-party cookies includes user selections at login, preferred language, and any products added to a shopping cart. The website uses these cookies to track user sessions and provide customised features and information.
Example:
When you visit an online store and add items to the buying cart, the retailer develops a first-party cookie to keep track of your decisions. When you do so, the website will store the items in your purchasing cart until you are ready to check out.
Other websites than the one the user is currently viewing store cookies from third-party domains on their browser. Other parties have a presence on the website, such as advertising or analytics companies. For the purposes of serving up relevant ads, measuring how well a website performs, and compiling analytical data, third-party cookies are widely used.
Example:
If you visit a news website that has advertisements from many companies, those companies may use third-party cookies to collect information about your visit and tailor their ads to your specific interests and choices. By using these cookies, marketers may target their messages more precisely and assess the success of their efforts.
What does cookieless data mean?
Cookieless data is user activity data obtained without browser cookies. Cookies, little text files kept on a user’s device, monitor website activities for customization, targeted advertising, and analytics. However, privacy concerns and changing restrictions have reduced cookie use.
Cookieless data is collected and analyzed via different techniques. First-party data—voluntarily provided by users—can be used. Device IDs, IP addresses, and login information may be used to analyse user activity.
Fingerprinting, which creates unique user profiles based on device and browser specifications, tracks and analyzes user behaviour in cookieless environments. Advanced machine learning and artificial intelligence algorithms analyse massive datasets and provide insights without cookies.
The Cookieless data movement aims to protect user privacy, comply with privacy laws like GDPR and CCPA, and address user concerns about data monitoring and targeted advertising. Businesses may still get user insights while respecting privacy and legal standards by using alternate means and limiting cookie usage.
How to prepare for a cookieless future?
| Method | Explanation |
| Privacy First | Make data privacy a priority. Implement privacy-by-design principles to build privacy into your systems and procedures. Be transparent, user-controlled, and data-minimal. |
| First-party data | Build and utilise user-generated data. Encourage opt-ins, registrations, and loyalty schemes to collect user data. Preferences, hobbies, demographics, and buying history are examples. A solid first-party data strategy may decrease third-party cookies and retain direct user interactions. |
| Manage consent | Implement a strong consent management system to provide informed and granular data collection and processing permission. Communicate how the data will be used and give people simple tools to adjust their selections. To ensure compliance with changing privacy laws, review and update consent methods. |
| Use alternate data acquisition methods | Replace behavioural targeting with contextual targeting. Contextual targeting matches ads to site content and context. You may target information without user profiles by analyzing context. |
| Target contextually | Discuss cookieless tactics with advertising and analytics partners. Develop privacy-focused industry standards and best practices. |
| AI and advanced analytics | Apply AI and sophisticated analytics to huge datasets. Machine learning algorithms evaluate trends and behaviours to tailor experiences without user identification. Invest in privacy-preserving solutions that can help you get useful insights. |
| Industry partnerships | Discuss cookieless tactics with advertising and analytics partners. Develop privacy-focused industry standards and best practices. |
| Inform and adapt | Follow privacy rules and industry developments. Review and update privacy policies, procedures, and technology to meet evolving needs. As the cookieless landscape evolves, adjust and iterate your tactics. |
| Team training | Your staff should be trained and prepared to use privacy-conscious data collection and targeting tactics in a cookieless future. |
| Test and optimize | Test and improve data and targeting. Track user engagement, conversion rates, and other data to improve your cookieless strategies. |
Why are cookies going away?
Cookies are not going away entirely, despite the fact that privacy concerns and new legislation are making their use more restricted. However, cookies’ functions are evolving, and companies will soon have to adjust to a world without them. The cookie industry is evolving for a number of reasons:
- Concerns about privacy: Users are more concerned about their personal information and want more say over how it is used online. Cookie monitoring and targeting are subject to certain limitations as a result of privacy laws like the General Data Protection Regulation and the California Consumer Privacy Act.
- Limits imposed by browsers: Google Chrome and other widely used browsers have incorporated features to limit or eliminate the use of third-party cookies. These modifications make it harder for marketers and advertising to follow visitors from site to site.
- Changes in technology: Anti-fingerprinting and other advanced tracking protection solutions are being developed to mitigate the impact of cookies. These innovations are geared towards making users’ online lives more secure while still giving them access to individualised content.
- Change to rely on user permission: The trend now is towards requiring users to provide their express permission before any data is collected or processed. The opportunity to opt in or out of monitoring and targeting is being made available to users.
Conclusion:
Even in a cookie-free future, cookie banners will continue to play an important role in gaining users’ approval, maintaining compliance with privacy legislation, and establishing credibility. Businesses may show they care about their customer’s personal information by using a cookie banner to explain their data collection practices. Organisations must use cookie banners as an intrinsic element of user privacy and compliance strategies to effectively traverse the cookieless future.
The combined influence of these variables has led to a progressive decline in the usage of conventional third-party cookies. First-party cookies, or those created by the currently viewed website, continue to see heavy usage for things like session management, customization, and security.
If you have any questions, please contact us at seersco.com. And start for expenditure in the privacy world.
