Syllabus Lesson 29 of 156 · Consent, dark patterns and taking back control
Consent, dark patterns and taking back control

What an honest banner looks like

Why it matters Knowing what a fair banner looks like gives you a yardstick for every site you visit. And if you build or run a website, it is a short list you can check your own banner against today.

A fair question

Imagine a waiter who asks "Would you like a dessert?" and holds up two equally sized menus labelled Yes and No. That is a fair question. A waiter who says "Dessert is coming unless you fill in this form" is not. An honest banner is the first waiter.

Three things every honest banner does

  1. "Reject" is as easy as "Accept". Both on the first screen, same size, same style, same number of clicks.
  2. No pre-ticked boxes. Every optional purpose starts switched off. Only "strictly necessary" cookies, the ones the site needs to work at all, such as keeping your basket, may be on without asking.
  3. Nothing loads before you choose. Ad and analytics scripts wait until you say yes. If you say no, they never load.

Strictly necessary cookie: a cookie the site cannot work without for something you asked for, such as staying logged in or remembering your basket. It is not used for ads or for measuring you.

The good extras

  • Plain words. "Show you ads based on other sites you visit" rather than "enhance your experience".
  • Specific purposes. A short list such as "Analytics" and "Advertising", each with one sentence saying what it means.
  • Easy to change later. A "Privacy choices" link in the footer reopens the banner, and changing your mind is as easy as the first answer.
  • Remembers your no. You are not asked again on every page or every visit.
  • Respects GPC. If your browser sends Global Privacy Control, the site can treat it as a no and skip the question.

An example

library.example uses cookies to keep you logged in (always on).
With your permission, we would also like to:
  [ ] Count visits anonymously to improve the catalogue (Analytics)

   [ Reject all ]   [ Accept all ]   [ Choose ]

Both main buttons are the same. The one optional purpose is off. The words say exactly what happens.

Try it Check whether a site loads trackers before you choose. Open a site in a private window so you see its banner, open DevTools and its Network tab, then reload the page without clicking the banner. If you see requests to ad or analytics companies before you have answered, the banner is not honest about rule 3.

If you build sites

The hard part of rule 3 is technical: the scripts must be wired so they only load after consent. Test it the same way: fresh private window, Network tab open, do not click, and confirm nothing optional loads. Then click Reject, browse a few pages and check again.

A common misconception

"No banner means no tracking." Some sites track without asking at all, and some sites genuinely need no banner because they use only strictly necessary cookies. The banner is not the proof; the Network tab is.

Recap

  • Reject must be as easy as Accept: same screen, same size, same clicks.
  • Optional purposes start switched off.
  • Nothing optional loads before you choose; the Network tab shows the truth.
  • Good banners use plain words, are easy to change later, and respect GPC.

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