3 ms·
> 4. If you are such an advanced user of cookie-banners then it is natural for you to think they are somewhat useful for you - what are the advantages of this?
by JoshTriplett 5y ago
> 4. If you are such an advanced user of cookie-banners then it is natural for you to think they are somewhat useful for you - what are the advantages of this?
They're not useful, they're an unwanted annoyance. Nobody wants to fill out a cookie form, they want to browse the site. Delete the cookie banners and the associated tracking completely.
Figuring out whatever tortuous process any particular cookie banner uses in lieu of what should be an equally prominent "reject all" button (or a completely absent banner and no tracking) does not make me an "advanced user of cookie banners".
> 3. Do you know about some instruments like DO-NOT-TRACK but for cookie banners?
Yes, Do-Not-Track is precisely that instrument. (And occasionally, some of the cookie banners seem to notice the do-not-track and use it to pre-populate all the checkboxes to "no".) If a site receives a Do-Not-Track, it should not show a cookie banner, and should just auto-reject all tracking. (If a site doesn't receive a Do-Not-Track, it should also not show a cookie banner, and should still auto-reject all tracking.)
> Adblock or adblock-like extentions IMO miss the point of doing the conscious decision.
There shouldn't need to be a conscious decision; all of the banners and tracking should be auto-rejected.
- dredmorbius 5y agoSince you mention "delete the cookie banners and associated tracking completely" without specifying methods: On browsers which support it, I use uMatrix and uBlock Origin, as well as the Stylus CSS manager. uBlock Origin has an element remover that will permanently remove elements from a website. It's point-and-click, though you may need to hunt a bit to find the full element responsible for annoyances. (There's also a "zapper", which is temporary only.) I'll typically remove cookie and all other nags, as well as social "link litter", recommendations, Taboola chumboxes, and the like, if my normal adblocking hasn't already addressed these. Under uMatrix, I'll simply globally deny cookies to the site. Since for most sites the only value I receive from cookies is to remove cookie nags ... this has zarro effect on any site functionality. (For a very small number of sites which I rely on authentication --- of which HN is a very large share --- I of course don't do this.) Where necessary, tracking hosts / domains are blocked via a DNS-based blocklist. DNT would of course be the proper way to achieve all of this. The advertisers and surveillance industry have chosen to ignore this. Turnabout is fair play. Another option, and one I rely on increasingly, is to view the site via alternative intervases such as the Internet Archive or Archive.Today, outline.com, 12ft.io, etc. On my e-ink tablet, I'll frequently save page as PDF or ePub and read that instead. (The EInkBro "save to ePub" feature is a bit of brilliant genius, as it permits saving multiple pages to a single document or "book", and is an excellent way of organising reading for a day or week. See: https://toot.cat/@dredmorbius/107958709435468728 https://toot.cat/@dredmorbius/107958709435468728) TL;DR: Nuke banners, block cookies, using browser extensions, or hit the content from an alternate service.
- JoshTriplett 5y ago> Since you mention "delete the cookie banners and associated tracking completely" without specifying methods For clarity, I was suggesting that site owners eliminate the banners and associated tracking. That said, I'd certainly second the recommendation for uBlock Origin.
- dredmorbius 5y agoI was suggesting that site owners eliminate the banners and associated tracking. Filed under: things I'm not holding my breath for.