- From: =JeffH <Jeff.Hodges@KingsMountain.com>
- Date: Mon, 06 Jun 2011 08:50:04 -0700
- To: ietf-privacy@ietf.org, public-privacy@w3.org
Subject: [Cups-friends] new UK cookie rules and example of compliant informed consent process From: Lorrie Faith Cranor <lorrie@cs.cmu.edu> Date: Sun, 5 Jun 2011 14:58:08 -0400 (11:58 PDT) To: cups@cups.cs.cmu.edu Cc: cups-friends@cups.cs.cmu.edu New UK (and eventually EU) cookie rules... nobody is quite sure of what to make of them http://successfulsoftware.net/2011/05/31/nearly-all-uk-business-websites-now-technically-illegal-eu-sites-to-follow/ The UK Information Commissioners Office uses their own website to provide an example of how to provide a cookie notice. http://www.ico.gov.uk/news/current_topics/website_changes_pecr.aspx Note the white box at the top of the website that states: "On 26 May 2011, the rules about cookies on websites changed. This site uses cookies. One of the cookies we use is essential for parts of the site to operate and has already been set. You may delete and block all cookies from this site, but parts of the site will not work. To find out more about cookies on this website and how to delete cookies, see our privacy notice." There is a check box that says "I accept cookies from this site" and if you check it the warning goes away. If not, you get to see this lovely warning on every page you visit on this site. This statement seems to be saying that they already set a cookie and the only way to do anything about it is to set your browser to block cookies. So it is not at all clear to me what you are agreeing to when you click accept. Later on in the page (and only on this particular page, the warning actually appears on every page of the site) they state "We are setting our analytics cookies only when a user provides their consent." So that must be what the consent is about... but this hardly seems like an informed consent. From the note at the top basically I'm being coerced into providing consent to get the warning to go away without being provided with any information about what the cookie does. The website goes on to say "Currently our website contains one cookie that we do not use, but is essential for part of the site to operate." I'm not really buying this. If it is essential for the site to operate they must be using it somehow. It sounds to me like their site is run using some sort of site management software they bought and they don't know how to turn off the cookies. Lorrie _______________________________________________ Cups-friends mailing list Cups-friends@CUPS.CS.CMU.EDU http://CUPS.CS.CMU.EDU/mailman/listinfo/cups-friends
Received on Monday, 6 June 2011 15:55:11 UTC