ATTENTION TO COOKIES
The European parliament issued a new privacy law in May 2011 which obliges websites to request users' permission to use cookies relating to the services offered. There EU Cookie Law (European cookie law) was also approved in Italy entering into force one year later, on 1 June 2012 with legislative decrees 69/2012 and 70/2012.
Some explanations for how to adapt to the cookie policy:
The Italian State, like all those belonging to the European Community, has decided to transpose the cookie directive to ensure the safe and transparent browsing of web users.
There is a lot of confusion around these issues and it would be useful to shed some light.
The legislation is oriented towards privacy protection of users but at the same time it is a good compromise for the online advertising market (which also concerns advertising investors).
What are the provisions of this new law?
The Italian jurisdiction passes from an "opt-out" regulation, in which cookies were liberalized without discrimination, to a "opt-in" legislation in which it is necessary to ask your users for an express consent, without which cookies cannot be activated, unless the "biscuits" are necessary for the provision of the requested service (article 2-5 of the Directive).
TYPE OF COOKIES
Let's deepen the topic:
Cookies are used by Web Analytics platforms to correctly record visits to a site and therefore are useful for advertisers to plan strategies.
The Guarantor has differentiated the "technical" cookies from those of "Profiling" which can be installed by the site manager and by those installed by "third parties" or a different site that installs cookies through the first.
Technical cookies are used to improve the browsing experience by remembering what is in the cart or the language set in the navigation. They are structured ad hoc to simplify the user's life.
Profiling cookies are used to create the user's profile while browsing and can be used to send advertising messages in line with the preferences agreed by the browser itself.
Precisely for this reason it is necessary to have adequate information drawn up by the site operator and a request for consent because both the Guarantor and Europe itself consider them invasive for the user's private sphere.
Those installed by the owner of the site are also defined as "editorial" because they refer to the relationship between publishers, licensees and advertisers.
In this case the publisher must inform in the so-called "Extended information" the user in navigation.
In profiling cookies, the Guarantor accepts that a publisher is not necessarily informed about the third-party cookies that are installed.
What do you need to show to the user before you start browsing the site?
It is necessary that the same be presented with a pop-up, a status bar or a lightbox where it is explained that there is an information and that the site is tracking its navigation in order not to risk losing users due to a message that is not understandable to those who are not in the sector
This banner must be present on all pages of the site and not only on the home page because the user could enter the navigation from any page of the site. Anyone, of course, must have the possibility to ask to be removed from the tracking of profiling or third-party cookies.
It is interesting to know that an obvious click is not required for acceptance but just continue browsing to implicitly accept what is written in the information.
It is understood that technical cookies do not need any authorization!
The privacy issue is not just for those who work or live off advertising: it is necessary to guarantee the user a transparent browsing experience and all the necessary safety.
All in all, as regards the management of the cookies installed by the manager, it is not difficult to comply and it is possible to deal with it even just by following a trace on the web. Let's see how.
What should we do on our sites?
First of all you have to draw up a document (a page) where I present the navigation cookies, both technical and third-party. We are talking about the cd page of "Extended information".
After which a layer - "brief information" - must be prepared to be presented to all new visitors to the site in which to place the link to the privacy policy and an explanation of the fact that by continuing to browse, you are implicitly accepting that the site may use cookies to improve the browsing experience.
N: B: in the brief information it must also be indicated whether the site uses third-party cookies or not.
The extended information must be linked from all pages of the site, even only in the lower part (footer).
The so-called "transitional phase" - to adapt our sites ends June 2, 2015 and to comply, with regard to the cookies used by web analytics, that's enough a simple update on your CMS. Extended information is required for tracking cookies activated on your site.
- THE SANCTIONS
The sanctions communicated by the guarantor are listed below.
- For omitted or unsuitable information, a penalty of between six thousand and thirty six thousand euros is envisaged
- The installation of cookies without users' consent provides for a fine of between ten thousand and one hundred and twenty thousand euros
- The omitted or incomplete notification to the guarantor instead ranges from twenty thousand to one hundred twenty thousand euros
LEGAL SUPPORT
Is it necessary to contact a law firm?
The advice is to have a lawyer read everything too but the legislation is clear enough and if you have made it this far you may already have all the useful elements.
A lawyer is always able to grasp all the details of the legislation and therefore I do not exclude the possibility of contacting your trusted representative to evaluate in depth but it is still possible to adapt by following the rules imposed by the Guarantor and published in the Official Gazette.
If necessary, you can indicate this link to your lawyer where everything is explained with references to the previous and referred to regulations:
Provision of the Privacy Guarantor of 8 May 2014, published in the Official Gazette no. 126 of last June 3 http://www.garanteprivacy.it/web/guest/home/docweb/-/docweb-display/docweb/3118884
