What is Google Consent Mode?
What is Google Consent Mode?
Google Consent Mode is a tool that connects data privacy with data-driven digital advertising. Consent Mode adjusts how Google services collect data from users based on their consent preferences. When a visitor accepts or rejects, Google Consent Mode directs Google Analytics and advertising services to:
- Collect full data (accept)
- Collect only anonymized data (reject), which does not include personally identifiable information
You can learn more about how Consent Mode works in the Google documentation.
What is version 2 of Google Consent Mode?
The main change in version 2 of Google Consent Mode is the addition of two new parameters:
ad_user_data
This parameter reflects the user's consent preference regarding sharing their data with Google's advertising services. The values can be "granted" or "denied," depending on the user's choice obtained through the site's cookie consent banner. If consent is denied, Google's ad tags will refrain from collecting or sending identifiable user data.
ad_personalization
This parameter indicates whether a user has opted for ad personalization and remarketing. Like ad_user_data, it reflects user preferences captured through the consent interface. A value of "denied" will disable personalized ad functionality, such as remarketing or interest-based targeting.
These two permissions are mapped to the marketing cookie category. This means that the Lawwwing script will automatically send the appropriate signals to Google Tag Manager when consent is given.
Google Consent Mode v2 Parameters
| Consent Type | Description | Supported by Lawwwing |
|---|---|---|
ad_storage | Enables the storage of information for advertising purposes (via cookies). | Yes |
ad_user_data | Defines consent for sending user data related to advertising to Google. | Yes |
ad_personalization | Defines consent for personalized advertising. | Yes |
analytics_storage | Enables the storage of information for analytics, such as visit duration (via cookies). | Yes |
functionality_storage | Enables storage that allows the proper functioning of the website or application (e.g., language settings). | Yes |
personalization_storage | Enables the storage of information for personalization (e.g., video recommendations). | Yes |
security_storage | Enables the storage of security-related information (e.g., authentication functions, fraud prevention, and other user protection systems). | Yes |
Do I Need to Enable Google Consent Mode Version 2?
Originally, Consent Mode was designed to achieve data protection with minimal impact on data collection for your domain. However, starting from March 2024, companies using Google services must ensure they have obtained user consent before displaying ads with personalization features.
Consent Mode is currently compatible with the following Google services:
- Google Analytics
- Google Ads (Google Ads Conversion Tracking and Remarketing)
- Google Tag Manager
- gtag
- Floodlight
- Conversion linker
What happens if I do not enable Google Consent Mode version 2?
If you do not implement a Google-certified CMP that is compatible with Consent Mode by March 2024, you will only be able to continue showing non-personalized ads on Google platforms.
How do I enable Google Consent Mode version 2?
To enable Google Consent Mode version 2 on your website, you need to have a cookie banner solution implemented. If you already have a Lawwwing subscription, the Lawwwing script will automatically send the appropriate signals to Google Tag Manager upon consent. However, you will need to manually ensure that a default state is set.
What is the difference between Basic and Advanced Consent Mode?
Google offers two types of implementations:
- Basic Consent Mode
- Advanced Consent Mode
The use of Basic or Advanced Consent Mode is determined by how you configure the tags. Refer to Google's documentation on how specific tags behave with consent mode: Consent Mode Reference.
Basic consent mode
When you implement consent mode in its basic version, you prevent Google tags from loading until users interact with a consent banner. With this configuration, no data is transmitted to Google before users interact with the consent banner.
To use Basic Consent Mode, uncheck the Google Consent Mode v2 option in the Lawwwing settings panel, thus enabling the automatic blocking of Google tags until the user has given their consent.
Advanced consent mode
When you implement consent mode in its advanced version, Google tags load when users open the website or application in question.
Google tags have Integrated Consent. This means that if you do not specifically configure them to require consent, they will always load regardless of the consent given, but will adjust their behavior based on the consent status.
Activate the Google Consent Mode v2 option in the Lawwwing configuration panel to enable Advanced Consent Mode. guide
While consent is denied, Google tags will send cookieless pings.
You can find a detailed overview of Basic and Advanced Consent Mode in the Google Ads guide: About Consent Mode.
IAB TCF 2.2 with Google services
If you use any Google tools on your website, by enabling the use of the IAB TCF v2.2 framework in Lawwwing, it will be used to communicate the consent status of your users to Google.
The TCData will be updated (TCData.enableAdvertiserConsentMode) so that Google can infer the settings of ad_storage, ad_personalization, and ad_user_data from the TC string. This incorporates the updates of Google Consent Mode v2 directly into the TCString.
However, to mitigate potential issues related to network loading times, we recommend additionally implementing the Consent Mode script with default consent states manually to ensure that Google tags are not activated without consent.
If you need additional assistance or have questions, feel free to contact us, and we will be happy to help 🙂