2024: The Year Of Privacy

Though Google has delayed the deprecation of third-party cookies again, the machinery of law and legislation around the world doesn’t have to operate on Google’s timetable. Indeed, 2024 has proven to be an incredibly-active year where new legislation has either been passed, or had all its provisions kick in.

The upshot of these laws is that many of the things that underpin the adtech industry — like third-party tracking cookies and other methods of data collection — will no longer be possible without user consent, or no longer possible at all.

As a result, publishers, advertisers, agencies, and everyone else in the adtech ecosystem has been scrambling to comply with the new regulations — and to figure out a way to do so without losing ground financially.

One problem, of course, is that there are a lot of laws.

Laws Publishers Need To Know

The law is ever-evolving, but here are some of the biggest laws affecting publishers in 2024: 

EU Laws:

• GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) – European Union (EU) — a sweeping privacy law in the European Union that governs data collection and requires user consent (hence those “accept cookies” pop-ups on every website)
• ePrivacy Directive – European Union (EU) — grants users in the EU additional right to privacy, including the requirement that users consent to being tracked. This is another reason third-party tracking cookies are on the way out. 

USA Laws:

• CCPA (California Consumer Privacy Act) – California — inspired by Europe’s GDPR, the CCPA gives Californians more control over their personal data and “opt-out” capabilities. This has had a ripple effect throughout the industry and other states.
• CPRA (California Privacy Rights Act) – California — Not actually part of the CCPA, but an expansion upon the privacy and user rights granted by the CCPA.
• VCDPA (Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act) – Virginia — inspired by the CCPA (and by extension the GDPR) this gives residents of Virginia additional privacy rights.
• COPPA (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act)  a federal law designed to protect children under 13, and how data on them is collected.
• My Health My Data Act – Washington State — this law specifically covers healthcare data, which is of concerns for various websites and businesses from eyeglasses to prescriptions. 

Other Countries:

• PIPEDA (Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act) – Canada  governs how private entities — like businesses and organizations — collect personal data.
• LGPD (Lei Geral de Proteção de Dados) – Brazil — Brazil’s version of the GDPR, protecting user privacy and data collection.

How Publishers Can Protect Privacy

You’ve already undoubtedly seen one side-effect of these new laws. Because these laws require positive consent from users before collecting data, websites the world over have been addressing this concern with pop-ups that ask you to consent to the use of cookies. These pop-ups also allow you to choose between allowing all cookies, or only allowing those necessary for the normal function of the website. 

This level of consent is the current standard for the Better Business Bureau’s Digital Advertising Accountability Program, but over the coming year simply getting users to agree to cookies will likely become insufficient. Transitioning away from third-party cookies entirely will become the new standard.

Reading up on the laws above — or at the very least, appointing someone within your organization to stay informed about these changes — is a good start to figuring out which jurisdictions apply to your business, and which rules you have to follow. But when in doubt, following the strictest guidelines will ensure you’re able to operate anywhere around the world.

So that’s protecting user data squared away. What about protecting your business’s bottom line?

First-Party Data: The Way Forward

Though third-party cookies are on their way out, first- and second-party data will still be nice and legal even under the strictest legal systems. The difficulty, of course, is that you can buy as much third-party data as you need, while first-party data is something you have to do yourself.

There are ways around this issue, however. So-called “second-party data,” which is essentially just someone else’s first-party data, will still be allowable under many circumstances.

Additionally, employing more robust methods for first-party data collection can help you bump up your numbers. Gamification, comment sections below your articles, trivia & poll widgets, and other tools make the user experience more fun for site visitors while also funneling more first-party data to you.

Another benefit of first-party data is that it’s more accurate and reliable (because you collected it yourself) and therefore you can make informed decisions with less data than you’d need when relying on third-party data.

Ultimately, with a good strategy in place, you should be able to continue your monetization efforts uninterrupted no matter what new laws come your way.