{"id":10011513,"date":"2026-06-29T12:58:10","date_gmt":"2026-06-29T11:58:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/amtivo.com\/uk\/standards\/\/\/\/"},"modified":"2026-06-29T13:03:19","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T12:03:19","slug":"website-cookie-consent-why-it-matters","status":"publish","type":"standard-post-filter","link":"https:\/\/amtivo.com\/uk\/standards\/cyber-essentials\/insights\/website-cookie-consent-why-it-matters\/","title":{"rendered":"Website Cookie Consent \u2013 Why It Matters"},"content":{"rendered":"

You\u2019ve\u00a0probably noticed\u00a0a growing number of websites using a cookie consent platform designed to capture user consent for certain cookies. Such platforms also inform visitors of the cookies and similar tracking technologies used by the website\u00a0in order to\u00a0make it clear what a user would be giving consent for before these are activated. While some cookies are deemed to be strictly necessary and do not require consent, if your website uses non-essential cookies and you are not asking for consent before they are dropped on users\u2019 devices, then you\u00a0may be\u00a0operating your website illegally.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

This article gives a brief overview of the legislation surrounding website cookie consent, explains how you collect user consent and covers the\u00a0different types\u00a0of cookies.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

 <\/p>\r\n

What\u00a0Is the\u00a0Associated\u00a0Legislation?\u00a0<\/h2>\r\n

The law around cookies (and similar technologies) is found in the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR) 2003, which itself is based on an EU directive from 2002.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

Unlike the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act (DPA) 2018, which are\u00a0largely based\u00a0on principles, the PECR is rule-based \u2013 this means not much is open to interpretation. Significantly, although the PECR has not changed much over time, the threshold for consent to be valid is now much higher, thanks to the GDPR. This is the bit that is catching out a lot of business owners that\u00a0operate\u00a0websites.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

 <\/p>\r\n

What\u00a0Are the\u00a0Different\u00a0Purposes of\u00a0Cookies?\u00a0<\/h2>\r\n

In general, cookies are categorised as either strictly necessary or non-essential.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

Necessary cookies:<\/strong> Only those that you consider to be strictly necessary (those\u00a0required\u00a0for the operation of your website)\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0need prior consent. For instance, cookies on an e-commerce website that are used to remember\u00a0what\u2019s\u00a0in a shopping basket are\u00a0deemed\u00a0to be strictly necessary.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

Non-essential cookies:<\/strong> The non-essential\u00a0category could include functional cookies, performance-related,\u00a0analytical\u00a0or targeting (marketing). Non-essential cookies are those used for purposes that are not directly involved in the delivery of the website. You might consider them essential to track customer behaviour, but unless they are necessary to make the website work\u00a0in accordance with\u00a0its purpose, then they are\u00a0deemed\u00a0non-essential.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

Some cookies are used just for a single session,\u00a0whereas\u00a0others are persistent and may hang around for days, weeks or years. This may mean that the level of risk or exposure will vary but your legal responsibilities do not change.\u202f\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

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What\u00a0Is\u00a0Needed?\u00a0<\/h2>\r\n

Every website that is running non-essential cookies needs to have some mechanism that allows users to give consent for their use before they are dropped onto the user\u2019s device.\u00a0For the purpose of\u00a0this article,\u00a0this will be referred to\u00a0as a Cookie Consent Management Platform (CMP).\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

The cookie CMP should provide a permanent link to a \u2018settings\u2019 area where cookies can be activated or turned off if they had previously been set. Incidentally, if the options to run cookies are set to \u2018active\u2019 or \u2018on\u2019 when a user first arrives at your website, then the website\u00a0could be seen to be\u00a0operating\u00a0unlawfully. The reason is that one of the conditions for consent to be valid involves the user making an affirmative action to opt in or accept non-essential cookies. It follows that this action must take place before any cookies are dropped.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

In addition, there should be a supporting website\u00a0cookie policy that describes the purpose of the cookies with a corresponding list. This is important because you must inform users what it is you are asking them to accept\u00a0and\u00a0activate.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

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What\u00a0We\u00a0Do\u00a0At\u00a0Amtivo\u00a0<\/h2>\r\n

We have a\u202fcookie policy<\/a>\u202fpublished on our website and a consent box pops up for first-time users. Users can also find the link in the website footer that appears on every page. We explain that we use a variety of tracking technologies, and we state why we do it at the outset. Our use of cookies improves the way in which users can view our website; it enhances our understanding of how they use it and may assist us in our marketing activities.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

Our policy describes the purpose and the nature of the cookies covering both essential and non-essential ones, and how long they are set for. We also link it to our privacy policy, which provides our contact details should anyone have any questions.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

 <\/p>\r\n

In\u00a0Conclusion\u00a0<\/h2>\r\n

You must tell your website users if you set cookies and clearly explain what the cookies do and why. Some cookies are\u00a0deemed\u00a0strictly necessary and\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0need prior consent, but all other (non-essential) cookies do. You must obtain the user\u2019s consent at the outset and\u00a0in accordance with\u00a0the requirements set out in the GDPR.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

Knowledge of the data protection legislation, and its application, goes a long way to making your life easier\u00a0in the long run. In this respect, the cost of preparation and prevention\u00a0can be seen as\u00a0considerably less than the consequence of dealing with an investigation that could itself, result in a fine, enforcement action and\/or possible reputational damage.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

You may find the\u202fguidance on\u00a0cookies<\/a>\u202fby the\u00a0Information Commissioner\u2019s Office\u00a0(ICO)\u00a0of help.\u00a0<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"An overview of the legislation surrounding website cookie consent.","protected":false},"author":59,"featured_media":3804,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_searchwp_excluded":"","footnotes":""},"standard-post-categories":[31],"standard-post-tags":[32],"class_list":["post-10011513","standard-post-filter","type-standard-post-filter","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","standard-post-categories-insights","standard-post-tags-cyber-essentials"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWebsite Cookie Consent \u2013 Why It Matters - Amtivo<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Discover why cookie consent matters for you and how to make sure your website is compliant. 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