Google has now introduced a new Reject All option to the cookie consent banners that have become common on European websites after being slammed with a very hefty €150 million fine by regulators earlier this year.
According to firm, the change is due to a shift in how regulators who interpret European legislation requiring these banners explain how to comply with them, as well as a specific directive from France’s Commission Nationale de l’Informatique et des Libertés (CNIL).
Google Reject All option
Only two buttons related to cookies are actually accessible on the cookie consent banner: “I Accept” and “Personalize.” But nevertheless, in the hereafter, there’ll be three choices: “Accept All, Reject All, and More Options.” The renaming of buttons and the inclusion of a new one does not affect the options given to users, but it makes rejecting all cookies faster and easier. Rather than specifying several options, all it takes is a single button click.
The company announced it has begun rolling out the new cookie banner in France and will shortly extend it to all Google users in Europe, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland. Users who are not signed in to a Google account or who are using incognito mode will see this cookie prompt. If you’re logged in, go to Google’s “Data & Privacy” page to check and update your tracking preferences.
Announcing the update, Google product manager Sammit Adhya, wrote in a blog post,
“This update meant we needed to re-engineer the way cookies work on Google sites, and to make deep, coordinated changes to critical Google infrastructure. Moreover, we knew that these changes would impact not only Search and YouTube, but also the sites and content creators who use them to help grow their businesses and make a living.
We believe this update responds to updated regulatory guidance and is aligned with our broader goal of helping build a more sustainable future for the web. We’ve committed to building new privacy-preserving technologies in the Privacy Sandbox for the same reason. We believe it is possible both to protect people’s privacy online and to give companies and developers tools to build thriving digital businesses”
