The team behind OUT-LAW.COM has created a new web site called About Cookies (www.aboutcookies.org). Shelagh Gaskill, a partner with Masons, explains:
"The new law requires that a web site operator clearly indicates to visitors that the site uses cookies or other tracking technologies and gives users the opportunity to reject them."
Cookies are small text files used by most commercial web sites. The files are sent by a site to a user's computer and are stored on the user's hard drive, so that when the user visits the site again, the site will remember the user. But privacy fears over the misuse of cookies or other technologies like web bugs have driven new laws from Brussels. And the UK has to implement these laws this year.
Gaskill, one of Britain's leading authorities on data protection law, explained the problem of complying with the new law's information requirements for web sites:
"The obvious place for this information may be as part of a privacy policy. But these policies have to be short to be user friendly – and adding a few pages on how to delete or control cookies would make them unwieldy.
"So we created About Cookies to relieve this burden from British businesses. Any sites can link to our site free of charge. About Cookies explains much of what their users will need to know."
The site gives visitors instructions on dealing with cookies for the most popular browsers – including various versions of Microsoft's Internet Explorer, Netscape Navigator and Opera. "It's not realistic to expect every business to update its privacy policy every time Microsoft releases a new version of its browser," reasoned Gaskill.
Instead, a privacy policy can explain how a site uses cookies and provide a link to About Cookies.
The DTI last week finished a public consultation on its draft Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003. The Regulations are to implement a European Directive in the UK before 31st October 2003.
Development of the site is continuing, with new information being added to give even more help to internet users and businesses.
See: www.aboutcookies.org
The Government's consultation paper on the new law is here. The consultation closed on 19th June.