Google AdSense and Cookies (Cookie Law) email

EU Cookies

[Badger37]

Hi all,
I've just received an email from Google regarding AdSense and Cookies.
Cookie Law came in a couple of years ago and seems mostly to be a waste or time and just another irritation to website visitors. I was hoping that it would quietly go away!

The email from Google reads as if you now have to implement a 'consent mechanism' if you have already - are other people receiving these emails and what are peoples views (especially if they are in the UK like me).

I've put the Google email text below.
Thanks.



Google Ads Policy Team
Dear Publisher,

We want to let you know about a new policy about obtaining EU end-users’ consent that reflects regulatory and best practice guidance. It clarifies your duty to obtain end-user consent when you use products like Google AdSense, DoubleClick for Publishers and DoubleClick Ad Exchange.

Please review our new EU user consent policy as soon as possible. This requires that you obtain EU end users’ consent to the storing and accessing of cookies and other information, and to the data collection, sharing and usage that takes place when you use Google products. It does not affect any provisions on data ownership in your contract.

Please ensure that you comply with this policy as soon as possible, and not later than 30 September 2015.

If your site or app does not have a compliant consent mechanism, you should implement one now. To make this process easier for you, we have compiled some helpful resources at cookiechoices.org.

This policy change is being made in response to best practice and regulatory requirements issued by the European data protection authorities. These requirements are reflected in changes that have been recently made on Google’s own websites.
Thank you in advance for your understanding and cooperation.
Regards,
The Google Policy Team

[netmeg]

My dev is looking at ways to implement this with Google Tag Manager for the tiny number of EU users I get. Still think it's ridiculous.

[ember]

I think it is telling that they sent the email to European publishers but not to U.S. publishers (at least not any I know). If U.S. publishers are expected to comply, why didn't we also get an email? I think Google probably wants U.S. publishers to comply but isn't going to force the issue. I guess I'll find out this fall.

[Whatagreatdayitis]

Just to get a head start on all this, I'm using Sitebeam. It's free. And you know it really doesn't seem like such a bad thing to include on the site. Here's what it says on the bottom of the page:

"This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website."

They make it sound like a good thing. Then you have the option of learning more about the privacy policy or you can click "got it," which is a very common thing to click on on a lot of websites these days, and then the repeat visitor doesn't see it again. No big deal.

I have a feeling the opt-out thing could become required in the U.S. as well. Most of my revenue comes from the U.S., but about a fourth of it comes from European nations.

My main concern is that if advertising doesn't support free access to my site(s) then I'll have to start charging fees because I'm certainly not giving up my time to work for free or for dwindling adsense revenue.

[IanCP]

The irony in all of this is that the majority of sites such as mine, never ever used Cookies [no need] - now you need to set a cookie to tell someone you don't use Cookies - only third party people do it.

Marvellous.

[netmeg]

Ran across this plugin for WP. I dunno if it's everything you need, but I'll probably be looking into it.

[wordpress.org...]

[Badger37]

I've gone for Siltide's Cookie Consent (v2) - the free one that Google link to.
I do hope that v2 is 'good enough' and I don't find out later that only v1 is compliant!
v2 is much more basic and doesn't allow you to offer an option to reject cookies.

I've done quite a bit of tweaking to get things as I want them.
I'm using a Grid System layout so have added a maximum width to the banner.
Some of my pages are ancient and I found that the script was clashing with an old lightbox gallery - upgrading prototype.js sorted that out.

I've also tweaked things so that the banner ONLY displays for the first page view - moving pages dismisses the banner (the same as clicking Got It).

When I get some time I'm going to document some of this - might as well use the experience to get some traffic! :)

[ken_b]

Silktide ... "Got It"

I wonder if the publishers case would be stronger if that "Got it" said "OK" instead?

[Badger37]

Sorry, yes Silktide :)
I've missed the edit time now...

Google link to them from their cookiechoices website:
[silktide.com...]

You can change the "Got It" to whatever you like - it's quite flexible.
I've gone with "EU Cookie Blurb!" in my banner at the moment.

As Google use "Got It" and this thread is all about keeping Google happy with it's AdSense publishers I've used "Got It"!

I've changed pages I had forgotten I had today they are so old!

[EditorialGuy]

"This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website."

They make it sound like a good thing.

Yep. Sounds deceptive to me (especially on sites where the only cookies are from third parties such as Google AdSense).

[Badger37]

Yep. Sounds deceptive to me...

All I'm interested in is keeping Google happy after it's recent announcement :)
The wording of cookie banners is the easy bit.


My struggle is understanding what's 'compliant'.
Do people HAVE to have a system to block Cookies?
Are you allowed to display ads BEFORE a visitor has had a chance to choose their Cookie options?

[stapel]

Yeesh! I'm an American publisher, and this thread is the first I've heard of this policy. Seems odd that Google hasn't breathed a word of this to us.

Eliz.

[ember]

Which is why I am not THAT worried. A little worried, yes, but I'm always a little worried.

[RedBar]

Seems odd that Google hasn't breathed a word of this to us.

It's Google crap, can't anyone see what they trying to create?

Obfuscation...hey EU, we've told our publishers what they have to do to comply however they don't understand what they supposedly "need" to do ... Why? Because Google's trying to move the goalposts to suit THEIR agendae.

The EU conformity is out there, it's easy, Google are trying to eff with YOUR heads!

I am NOT changing one freakin' single thing on my sites since I know mine are compliant and IF Google ain't happy they can go take a long walk off a short pier!

[Whatagreatdayitis]

There's a good article in the most recent edition of Bloomberg about how Google "lost Europe." It provides some context regarding the issue being discussed here. [bloomberg.com...]

[Leosghost]

Vestager's greatest asset ( and Google's biggest problem in Europe ) is her search history..

[Leosghost]

re "cookies"..adsense publisher sites do not "set" Google cookies, nor can they "read" Google cookies, nor do they "use" Google cookies..

The EU cookie legislation only requires webmasters to give choices about cookies which the webmasters themselves set..and to notify that other 3rd parties may also be able to set cookies when you visit the site in question, the EU does not hold webmasters responsible fo the setting, nor the use of these 3rd party cookies..Google cookies included *..

The EU cookie legislation was only brought about due to the abuse of tracking cookies by facebook and Google ( the latter via adsense, analytics and doubleclick )..Google "persuaded" certain EU officials not to single them out, and to make the law apply to all sites that set or read cookies..

Now that Eric's friend Almunia is gone, Google are trying to rewrite the EU cookie law in the perception of adsense webmasters, and the public in general..

The EU are not forcing adsense publishers to comply with this law, the EU law requires Google to provide cookie transparence and opt outs where Google set and read cookies..if that is on adsense publisher sites ( or sites which use Ganalytics ) the EU considers that it is for Google to comply..the EU do not require individual site owners to consider themselves responsible for cookies set by third parties ( in this instance Google )..Google are trying to throw the blame for their cookie abuse and their non compliance ( not providing a way themselves for visitors to sites which run adsense , Ganalytics or doubleclick, and that thus have cookies set by Google ) onto the individual webmasters..

To read many of the comments on this thread..Google appear to have been successful in propagating this FUD ..many appear to think that this is the fault of the EU..it is not..

It is ( yet again ) Google trying to sidestep the law, or laws which do not suit it, and push the responsibility onto others..

Having failed to force ( lobby ) the EU into letting them do what they wanted, they are hoping that webmasters ( who it appears are willing to blame anyone except Google as long as the adsense checks keep rolling in, and or the share price keeps rising ) might be vocal enough to push the EU into letting Google have a free pass on cookies and tracking..

* of course Google do not tell webmasters this..they instead threaten to ban the adsense accounts of webmasters who do not "take responsibility" ( by publishing an EU cookie policy that Google approves of )..So..if you are a landlord..( website owner ) you are responsible for any crimes that your tenants ( Google ) commit..or so Google would like everyone to think..

[IanTurner]

Like IanCP my site doesn't set cookies, it would be really nice if Google gave us an option to have cookie free ads when creating an ad unit - that would give us an alternative solution that might be nicer than consent bars to implement.

I'm still absolutely baffled by the EU government though - they are making the internet harder for their own people to use and thus creating a significant commercial disadvantage for EU countries (think of the cumulative amount of time EU people spend clicking cookie consent buttons on every website that they visit!) This whole policy was the result of letting braindead morons who have no understanding of the commercial world try to come up with a solution.

IMHO a much better solution would have been for them to approach browser vendors/distributors and give them a grant to implement cookie blocking in their browsers with geolocation so that EU users would be presented with choices such as 'Block All Cookies', 'Give Me A Cookie Block Option For Each Website I Visit' and 'Allow All Cookies' when they installed the browser. This would have given them a much smaller population to police, made the vast majority of their populations life much easier and still provided the same (or better) level of privacy protection as their current solution.

[vordmeister]

The EU made a badly thought out law. If Google want to use that against the EU then my issue is with the EU for writing the law so badly in the first place. The law already applies to me but I have been breaking it about 1 million times a day for the last 4 years. With the google requirement it doesn't make sense to spend time updating my smaller sites.

Amazon and the like seem to have done something similar with the digital sales VAT law, and the badly thought out EU law that came out of that means I had to give up selling very small volumes of software (or sell them through Amazon!).

I've been trying to make a neat solution that won't distract too much. A static footer or header maybe. I'm not good at javascript, but a PHP solution would require a page refresh to dismiss the message. What is everyone else doing?

[bhukkel]

A static footer or header maybe. I'm not good at javascript, but a PHP solution would require a page refresh to dismiss the message

Just put this in your onclick handler of the Ok button:

onclick="setCookie('cookies_enabled', 'y', 365);document.getElementById('EU_Cookie_Message').hidden=1;"

setCookie is my own function. Second statement hides the Div element which contains the message. So you do not need to refresh the page.

[RedBar]

What is everyone else doing?

I use a very much simplified version of what Statcounter does and remember Statcounter is a top 600 site, Irish and operating under EU rules:

[statcounter.com...]

Reading from:

Third Party Advertiser Cookies

This puts the onus firmly on Google/whichever adco and clearly informs the visitor about third party cookies about which you have no control but the visitor can do if they so wish.

Mods: Hope the above link is ok?