EU Commission advice on cookies is inconsistent and unclear says the data protection watchdog for EU institutions. 

Peter Hustinx, European data protection supervisor said EU commissioner Neelie Kroes’ advice on gaining consent to place and use cookies on people’s computers is ambiguous. 

The recent amendments to the EU’s Privacy & Electronic Communications Directive require organisations to get informed consent before storing or retrieving information on users’ computers. 

This includes an organisation’s own cookies, third-party ones and cookies which track consumers’ online behaviour – known as online behavioural advertising (OBA). 

European companies have 12 months to comply with the new regulations. 

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) UK says organisations now have just under a year to make the necessary changes to comply with the cookies legislation but has stressed that it will investigate serious breaches during this time.

The pan-European industry is developing a self-regulatory framework for OBA. It alerts people of the use of behavioural advertising with a privacy icon and allows them to opt out. 

However, Hustinx is not convinced that this constitutes informed consent and points out that the self-regulation methods do not comply with the Directive. 

“These [advertising] associations have in fact failed to implement the new consent requirement,” Hustinx said in a speech at Edinburgh University.

Hustinx is calling for a policy whereby settings are set to reject third-party cookies until the user decides to accept them. 

The DMA will continue to run events to help members get their cookies in order. 

The DMA’s breakfast briefing: Mobile and the cookies law – how it will affect you takes place on Wednesday 27 July 2011.

Posted by 

Neil Turner