Cookie Disappearance: Only 10% of Irish Firms Prepared for a Cookie-less Future

32% of firms in Ireland say they are “not prepared at all” for a future which will preclude them from using 3^rd party cookies. In March of 2021, Google Chrome, the world’s biggest browser, announced the phasing out of third-party cookies, which are a key component of online advertising, and enable a company to effectively target particular audiences for their products or services.

By late 2023, third-party cookies will no longer be supported on the search engine. The EU’s General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR), alongside other international regulations like the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), are likely to make them obsolete within the next few years.

A bane on businesses, a boon for internet users

The average person will have their internet usage tracked and monitored every day through the use of cookies. The new GDPR guidance will put power back in the hands of ordinary internet users, making it easier for them to avoid being tracked online. However, many businesses, having not dealt with not tracking internet usage of consumers in years, have their complaints, with only 10% of companies surveyed feeling fully prepared for a future without cookies.

The Compliance Institute, who rolled out a survey of 144 compliance professionals within Irish organisations nationwide, say the results speak to a severe lack of communication between the two departments that will play the most crucial roles in ensuring that businesses successfully adapt to the new changes, namely the compliance and marketing departments.

The stats

The lack of collaboration between the two could very well prevent the organisation from fulling its regulatory duties and meeting the requirement of data protection legislation.

1. How prepared is your business for a cookie-less future? 

• Very prepared                                                                                                                       12%
• Somewhat prepared                                                                                                            56%
• Not prepared at all                                                                                                               32%

2. In your view, do compliance and DPO teams have a clear understanding of what personal data is obtained and processed by your company via third party cookies? 

• Yes                                                                                                                                          42%
• No                                                                                                                                           58%

3. How great a role does the compliance function within your organisation have in aspects of marketing such as first & third-party cookies and data capture? 

• Very involved                                                                                                                        23%
• Somewhat involved                                                                                                             31%
• Not involved much                                                                                                               23%
• Not involved at all                                                                                                                23%

Further highlights from the Compliance Institute Cookie Survey reveal:

• 6 in 10 say compliance and data protection teams within their organisation do not have a clear understanding of how 3^rd party cookies are used within the organisation
• 46% say the compliance function within their organisation has little to no involvement in aspects of marketing such as first & third-party cookies and data capture

Cookies: The next dinosaur?

Speaking of the findings, Michael Kavanagh, CEO of Compliance Institute, said: “The findings highlight a sharp knowledge gap that exists within compliance and data protection departments of Irish organisations, and it seems that this is largely due to a communication blockage with the people in the business that are at the forefront of this type of data collection and utilisation i.e. those whose expertise and responsibility lies in marketing”.

“Major changes are coming down the tracks and there will be no getting around this. All organisations will be forced to change their practices, and find other ways to collect information needed to research the market and target key audiences while keeping within the boundaries of data protection laws”.

“But it is very hard to see how the GDPR requirement for data protection by design and default is being effectively implemented if nearly 6 in 10 respondents have little or no involvement in first- and third-party data strategies and data capture, and 32% have no involvement at all in the development of alternative strategies”.

“There is no way that these organisations can effectively prepare for the changes, unless they change their strategy and allow for and enable much clearer lines of communication. Marketers need to do more to engage with their compliance colleagues. And compliance teams need to take the time to get to understand, what is, a fundamental part of their business, and one with a high potential risk for GDPR breaches”, Mr Kavanagh concluded.