Cookie consent banner (GDPR)
European GDPR law requires sites to ask permission before installing cookies (small tracking files) on visitors' computers. This check detec…
Analyse my site for freeUnderstanding "Cookie consent banner (GDPR)"
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), applicable across the European Union since 2018, along with the ePrivacy Directive, requires obtaining a user's explicit, prior consent before setting any cookie not strictly necessary for the site to function — notably advertising, audience-measurement (outside narrow exemptions) and social-media cookies.
A consent banner (also called a CMP — Consent Management Platform) must let the user accept, reject, or finely customise their choice by cookie category, with equal ease between "Accept" and "Reject". A simple notice such as "by continuing to browse, you accept…" without an explicit action no longer constitutes valid consent under current European data protection authority guidance and enforcement.
How TheSiteFuse checks "Cookie consent banner (GDPR)"
TheSiteFuse analyses the homepage's HTML looking for keywords associated with consent banners and the most common CMP solutions: cookie, consent, rgpd, gdpr, as well as the names of specialised tools cookiebot, tarteaucitron, axeptio, onetrust, didomi. The first keyword found is reported in the result. This is a presence-based detection — it does not verify the fine-grained compliance of the displayed text nor the banner's exact behaviour (effective blocking of cookies before consent, granularity of choice…).
Why "Cookie consent banner (GDPR)" matters
- Financial penalties — European data protection authorities can impose fines of up to 4% of worldwide annual turnover or €20 million for the most serious GDPR breaches. Multi-million-euro sanctions have already been issued against large companies for non-compliant cookie banners.
- Targeted regulatory audits — cookie compliance is among the most frequent checks performed by data protection authorities, including on small business sites, often following a visitor complaint.
- Loss of trust — a site perceived as careless about privacy harms brand image, particularly in B2B where buyers increasingly vet vendor compliance.
Fix "Cookie consent banner (GDPR)" step by step
Turnkey solutions (recommended for most sites)
- Axeptio — French solution, polished interface, free plan available for small sites.
- Tarteaucitron.js — open source and free, widely used, requires initial technical setup.
- Cookiebot / OneTrust / Didomi — international solutions, suited to high-traffic or multi-country sites, with automatic scanning of cookies set.
Compliance principles to respect regardless of the solution
- No non-essential cookie set before the user's explicit choice.
- "Reject" button as visible and accessible as the "Accept" button (same number of clicks).
- Choice customisable by category (audience measurement, advertising, social media…).
- Ability to change your choice at any time (a "Manage cookies" link in the footer).
- Consent validity limited to a maximum of a few months, after which the request must be shown again.
Reference resource
To deepen your understanding of the technical concepts behind this check, see the dedicated Wikipedia article.
Wikipedia — Cookie consent banner (GDPR)Does your site pass this check?
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