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According to the German judge, companiesmustrespect these configs underGDPR.
Adoption and support of DNT has been in sharp decline over the past years.
The firstweb browserto support the new initiative was privacy-focusedMozilla Firefoxwhich added the feature in March 2011.
Other services followed suit, including MicrosoftsInternet Explorer,ApplesSafari, and Opera.GoogleChrome embraced the industry trend in 2012.
Yet, after initial success with browsers, the DNT wave seemed destined to dwindle.
The problems started from the lack of similar support among websites and advertisers.
The implications of this ruling are potentially earth-shattering.
Websites have been ignoring the signal for years without consequence.
It was from this need for an alternative that theGlobal Privacy Control (GPC)was born in 2020.
Similar to DNT, the GPC is a signal sent over HTTP to op-out having your browsing data processed.
GPC seems to have gained more traction than DNT was ever capable ofuntil now at least.
According to AdGuard, GPC also makes things a bit easier for websites.
DNT just says “don’t track me” without specifying what tracking is.
What if the data being collected is actually required for the service to operate?
GPC says “do not sell or share my data” which is much easier to understand."
In August 2022, GPC evenwon its first legal battlein California against commercial retail brand, Sephora.
A success that the DNT initiative can claim under its belt.
“Website operators must respect this signal.”
According to the company, the verdict “sets a precedent and revives the all-but-abandoned idea of Do-Not-Track.”
A new era for Do Not Track protections?
“The implications of this ruling are far-reaching and potentially earth-shattering.
Websites have been ignoring the signal for years without consequence,” AdGuard told us.
In general, enforcement is possible."
“AdGuard has always prioritized user privacy, supporting both DNT and GPC across its range of products.
We are offering users an easy way to enable both these prefs with a single click.
In light of this pivotal court decision, we feel that AdGuard’s commitment becomes even more crucial.”
