One month to comply with new cookie laws

On the 26th of May 2012, all EU websites will have to comply with the new cookie law. This is an important law for all website owners to know because if you don’t prepare for this major change you could potentially be breaking the law!! Those in the UK have the remaining month to prepare for the law but if you work with any websites outside the UK, you will have to make immediate changes to be within the law.

What is a cookie and why are laws changing?

A cookie is a piece of data stored by a website within a browser and is used to remember settings and information from users. You can see the effects of cookies when browsing websites that allow you to personalise login information, or when ordering products online on a retail website. In fact most eCommerce websites will use Cookies as part of the standard user journey.

Cookies can also be used to monitor the habits of visitors for analytics purposes. The body responsible for the new law is the ICO (Information Commissioner’s Office) who have concerns for people’s security and are taking action.

What does the new cookie law mean?

The new cookie law means that every website now has to ask permission from the user to store cookies on the website. This turns things upside down because before this law, websites asked users to opt-out rather than opt-in. Websites that do not offer this choice will be breaking the law and action may be taken against them.

How do I comply with the new cookie law?

The most straight forward method to use to comply with this law is to use a pop-up. This especially includes websites used to target users for advertising or measuring. It is especially important to include any third party cookie information as well.

In terms of usability, you might not want to use any old pop-up on your website as this will most likely drive visitors away. However a better choice is what is called an accordion, a dialogue box that slides down the top of the browser window alerting users to opt-in. This is the preferred method because it doesn’t get in the way of the website design and the user can browse without being too distracted. You can find an example of this in the ICO website.

A solution that works well without obstructing the content is Cookie Control, an easy to install widget that allows users to accept the use of cookies without being distracted. It is also available as a WordPress plugin. For more information and to see it in action click here.

Another great example of a website that has made the necessary preparations is Yell.com. They’ve used a dialogue strip that is non-intrusive, and you can even choose to get rid of it if you want.

What kind of cookies are exempt?

Although this law is important there are some cookies that are exceptions, such as; cookies that remember goods so that users can add and buy efficiently from an online shop, or cookies that improve security or the browsing speed of a website. Any other type of cookie that the website doesn’t need in order to run properly comes under the law.

Conclusion

If you own a website that makes use of any type of cookies, you should immediately prepare for the law in advance so that you don’t come under any type of heavy fire.