> And the Dutch DPA’s guidance makes it clear internet visitors must be asked for permission in advance for any tracking software to be placed — such as third-party tracking cookies; tracking pixels; and browser fingerprinting tech — and that that permission must be freely obtained. Ergo, a free choice must be offered.
Neither cookies, nor tracking pixels, nor browser fingerprinting are software. Your web browser is software. The server side runs software. These are data.
It seems pedantic, but I think it shows that the lawmakers have an underlying misunderstanding of how tech (and the world) works.
To make an analogy, cookies and tracking pixels are akin to license plates. I think the authors of this law thought they were more like cellular GPS beacons.
It's one thing to say, "no installing a device which actively communicates home on your visitors". It's quite another to say, "No remembering your visitor's face unless they tell you it's ok."