Some European websites charge you to reject cookies; the USA maybe Next
Do you want to maintain your privacy? A cookie paywall on a single website might set you back €75 per year.
When you initially visit the website of Der Spiegel, Germany's largest online news outlet, you are given the option of purchasing a €4.99 monthly subscription or giving away your data.
T-Online, Bild, Die Welt, and a number of other news websites have the same option. Want to browse privately? Cough it up or kick the rocks. The new privacy issue arising in some Central European nations has been nicknamed a "cookie barrier," and it has the potential to make web browsing exceedingly pricey.
You've probably encountered websites that need you to accept or reject cookies before you can access any content. A cookie paywall creates a more severe barrier, forcing you to pay to prevent tracked. The feature is one way that internet firms are attempting to sidestep European privacy restrictions while remaining lucrative. Incognito Mode will not get you out of this one. With a federal privacy legislation on the horizon in the United States, onerous cookie paywalls may become a vision of the future for the American internet if authorities are not cautious.
"It's a win-win situation for the websites." "They get paid with data or with money," said Cristiana Santos, an assistant professor of privacy and data protection law at Utrecht University and co-author of an upcoming research paper (PDF) examining cookie paywalls: "Your Consent Is Worth 75 Euros A Year - Measurement and Lawfulness of Cookie Paywalls."
Santos and her colleagues examined websites from all around Central Europe. While they are still uncommon, the researchers found a handful of them among the top 13 news sites in Austria and Germany.
Santos and her colleagues examined websites from all around Central Europe. While they are still uncommon, the researchers found a number of them among the top 13 news sites in Austria and Germany.
Santos and company also discovered that privacy is costly. The report details how avoiding tracking on just just 13 websites will cost a stunning €728 per year (about $706). According to Der Standard, an Austrian tabloid, avoiding tracking on one website alone costs €75 per year. Would you be willing to pay for your privacy on a site-by-site basis? How much would you be willing to pay?
The cookie popups that have begun to afflict web browsing in both Europe and the United States are already rife with dark patterns, design tactics that nudge or confuse you into making a decision you would not have made otherwise. In fact, even if you make an effort to safeguard your privacy, you may not be successful. Even if you disable cookies, many websites will still track you. The cookie barrier takes this to its natural conclusion: forget about design tactics; they force the issue by involving your pocketbook.
People respect their privacy and will pay for solutions such as virtual private networks (VPNs) to safeguard it. However, personal data has historically not been valuable to the average customer. According to a 2020 survey conducted by the Technology Policy Institute, the majority of individuals would surrender practically any aspect of their internet privacy for less than $10. Most individuals will prefer data over a monthly price if the choice is between the two.
"Because just a small fraction would pay this cost across a wide range of digital services, data exploitation would become the default for most Europeans," said Wolfie Christl, a data industry researcher. "I hope that regulators, judges, and lawmakers identify and address this issue."
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), Europe's comprehensive privacy regulation, compels businesses to acquire your permission before collecting and processing your data. The legislation requires consent to be "freely supplied," but there is enough leeway for interpretation that regulators in Austria and France have determined that the cookie paywall concept isn't clearly prohibited. So far, the European Data Protection Board, which regulates how GDPR is implemented throughout the EU, has been silent.
Cookie paywalls are not yet common in the United States. There are no federal privacy rules, and even the most stringent state privacy laws do not require firms to obtain your consent before tracking you. They are just required to provide you with an option to opt out. Most people don't bother, so firms can still easily monetize your data—but that might change.
"These opt-out provisions in the United States don't put as much pressure or incentive on corporations to transition to a 'consent or pay' model," said Christine Lyon, global co-head of data privacy and security at law firm Freshfields. Cookie paywalls could come to America if more stringent federal privacy regulations are passed, according to Lyon.
When privacy comes at a cost, the history of the web shows that most consumers would not pull out their credit cards to secure their data. That permissive attitude could undercut the fundamental purpose of rules like the GDPR.
According to Santos, the study's co-author, coercing people into giving up their privacy with a financial penalty does not result in genuine, freely provided permission. "We could see this practice spreading and becoming legitimized." The business model here is undeniably replicable."
#Cookies ##CookiePaywalls #DataPrivacy
SOURCE: gizmodo
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