In the Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution
New requirement
Many Data Protection Authorities across Europe (including the UK, France, Italy, Belgium, and more) have aligned their rules on cookies and trackers with the requirements of the GDPR and now explicitly require you to document your users’ preferences for the use of cookies. This is because cookies may process personal data, and record-keeping requirements arising from the GDPR apply.
What does this mean for me?
It means that you now need to keep records of the cookie preferences your users set when they visit your site.
In my case, do I need it?
If you have a cookie banner, you need the Cookie and Consent Preference Log. If you’re on iubenda’s current pricing (including the free plan), the Cookie and Consent Preference Log is already included. If you’re on a legacy Pro or Ultra license, you need to upgrade your Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution plan.
What happens if I don’t comply?
Failure to comply means that the cookie consents you do capture will be considered invalid in the eyes of the law. This puts you in violation of the GDPR and at risk for sanctions and fines of up to €20,000 000
How to comply
On iubenda’s current pricing? The Cookie and Consent Preference Log is included in all current plans, including the free plan. No upgrade needed.
On a legacy Pro or Ultra license? You need to upgrade your Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution plan to at least 50K pageviews/month to activate the Cookie and Consent Preference Log.
Frequently asked questions on the Cookie and Consent Preference Log
The Cookie and Consent Preference Log allows you to create records of your users’ cookie consent preferences when they visit your site. You need this feature to align with the requirements of most Data Protection Authorities across Europe (including the UK, France, Italy, Belgium, and more).
Current pricing: The Cookie and Consent Preference Log is included in all current plans, including the free plan. No separate upgrade is required.
Legacy plans: The smallest Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution plan with this feature covers 50k pageviews/month and costs $13 per month or $143 per year.
To get access:
- Current pricing users (all plans, including free)
You already have access to the Cookie and Consent Preference Log. Find it under “Dashboard > [Your website/app] > Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution > Log”. - New Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution users (legacy plans)
Purchase a Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution plan that includes at least 50k pageviews/month. - Existing Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution users (legacy plans)
- If you use our free Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution plan (25k pageviews/month), you need to upgrade to a paid Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution plan that includes at least 50k pageviews/month.
- If you already have a paid Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution plan, but you don’t have access to this feature (“Log“ under “Dashboard > [Your website/app] > Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution”), you must upgrade your plan. The upgrade involves an increase in the subscription fee of your Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution plan.
This applies to legacy pricing plans. With iubenda’s current pricing, the Cookie and Consent Preference Log is included in every tier, including the free plan.
Under legacy pricing, the Cookie and Consent Preference Log was associated with an increased subscription fee because it is an expensive feature to manage and maintain in terms of bandwidth and space. It requires an advanced computational infrastructure to ensure maximum data security and availability and involves handling high amounts of data.
No, you can use a single Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution plan for multiple websites: every site in your account will have separate Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution settings and a separate Cookie and Consent Preference Log.
The important thing is that the number of pageviews totaled by the sites in your account does not exceed the limit set by your Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution plan (in that case, as usual, you can always upgrade to a bigger plan, automatically or after our notice).
If you’re an agency or a web professional, we can move the projects from your clients’ accounts to your agency account upon request. This way, you can spread the cost among your customers (applying the markup you prefer).
This applies to users on legacy Pro or Ultra licenses.
No, the Pro and Ultra licenses include a free 25k pageviews/month Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution plan with no Cookie and Consent Preference Log.
To have the Cookie and Consent Preference Log, you need to upgrade your Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution plan. The smallest Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution plan with this feature covers 50k pageviews/month and costs $13 per month or $143 per year.
Yes. The Cookie and Consent Preference Log is included in all current plans, including the free plan. You don’t need to purchase a separate upgrade.
Access your Cookie and Consent Preference Log under “Dashboard > [Your website/app] > Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution > Log”.
Yes, if your website installs non-exempt cookies and European users visit it, you need to keep valid records of your users’ cookie preferences.
In other words, regardless of the number of monthly pageviews, you need to store a cookie and consent preference log if you have a cookie banner.
This primarily applies to legacy plan users. If you’re on iubenda’s current pricing, the Cookie and Consent Preference Log should already be available. If you still can’t access it, please contact our support team.
If you can’t access the Cookie and Consent Preference Log, you probably have an old Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution plan. To access the Cookie and Consent Preference Log, you’ll need to upgrade your plan. The paid upgrade will keep you on the same plan with the same number of pageviews but with the Cookie and Consent Preference Log enabled.
The procedure is entirely automated, and it doesn’t require any changes to the Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution script you’ve embedded on your site.
No, the Consent Solution collects and stores proof of consent specifically for online and offline forms, and requires some setup.
The Cookie and Consent Preference Log, however, is a fully automated feature of the Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution, our solution for managing consent preferences for cookies, trackers and similar technologies.
Current pricing: Yes. The Cookie and Consent Preference Log is included in all current plans, including the free plan.
Legacy plans: Under legacy pricing, the free Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution plan (25k pageviews/month) did not include the Cookie and Consent Preference Log. To access it, legacy users need to upgrade to a paid Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution plan that includes at least 50k pageviews/month.
The Cookie and Consent Preference Log solves this problem, without the need for a dedicated configuration. For each consent given, we collect:
- a string of 6 random hexadecimal characters and the timestamp to uniquely identify a specific consent and the time at which it was given
- the user’s IP address
This way, the consent is collected via the string of 6 hexadecimal characters and the IP address is uniquely linked to a specific user. If necessary, the DPA may:
- examine the user’s browser and compare it with the unique record in your logs (verifying proof)
- use the IP address to cross-check and verify the information