How to ensure cookie compliance on your website

Many companies have had recently had to innovate, work more digitally, and strengthen their online presence and websites. An important but often overlooked aspect in this process is compliance, namely cookie compliance.

Cookies can track user behaviour online and collect personal information, and are because of this governed by both the GDPR and e-Cookie directive. This means that when using specific types of cookies you need to ask for permission before you can start to track your website visitors. This is just one of a number of things your need to do to become cookie compliant. To help you become and stay compliant, we have created this checklist.

How to become cookie compliant:

• Make sure you have a cookie banner on your website
• Make sure you have a cookie policy on your website
• Your cookie policy must be easy to find and easy to read
• Know the difference between necessary and non-necessary cookies
• Ask for consent before non-necessary cookies are set on your website visitors’ equipment - no pre-ticked checkboxes, except necessary cookies
• Make it possible for your users to change their cookie settings easily, and make sure that the information you provide is comprehensible
• Remember that you can’t use cookies for other purposes than what is described in the cookie banner / consent
• Be able to document the cookie consents you obtain and the wording used in the cookie banner to obtain this consent
• Make sure legal documents such as your Privacy policy and Terms & Conditions are included as part of the consent collection process
• Store your cookie consents so you can prove to authorities that you have obtained consent from your users, if they e.g., ask for proof two years from now

Further reading

We have compiled an in-depth article about cookie compliance for your information. In the article you can find out more about the key legislation you need to be aware of, and the various compliance elements in the checklist that you need to comply with when working with cookies.

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