[EUR]NOYB files 422 formal GDPR complaints on nerve-wrecking “Cookie Banners”

noyb is a pan-European team of lawyers and experts, the core task of the office is to work on enforcement projects and to engage in the necessary research for strategic litigation.

• 42% of all violations in first batch of 516 websites fixed. 
  • In the first batch of complaints, companies remedied 42% of the violations that noyb identified in Spring 2021. Of the companies that previously violated the law in this respect, 42% added a “reject” option. 68% removed “pre-ticked” boxes. 46% solved issues around using different colors for “accept” and “reject” buttons. 22% gave up on claiming that they have a “legitimate interest” that would allow tracking without user consent. Overall, 1028 individual violations across more than 516 websites were removed by the companies. Among the companies that fully stopped using “dark patterns” to gain user consent, are global brands like Mastercard, Procter & Gamble, Forever 21, Seat or Nikon.
• “Withdrawal” option biggest obstacle for compliance. 
  • The biggest resistance from websites concern the GDPR’s requirement to make withdrawing consent as easy as giving consent. Only 18% added such an option (a “withdrawal icon”) to their website.

Cited from:

https://noyb.eu/en/noyb-files-422-formal-gdpr-complaints-nerve-wrecking-cookie-banners