5 Reasons Industry Leaders are Urgently Reevaluating Their Consent Management Tools

Consent management is, in many ways, Privacy 1.0. As one of the first pieces of privacy to have comprehensive legislation behind it (hello ePrivacy Directive), companies have been managing consumer consent through cookie banners for decades.

But with the rise of a sprawling, complex ad tech ecosystem, a flood of comprehensive privacy laws across the globe, and the creation of new regulatory bodies—whose sole focus is on enforcing privacy laws—the stakes on consent management have changed.

With hundreds of tracking technologies in use across the web today, complex enterprise data ecosystems, and stiff regulatory scrutiny, privacy professionals are beginning to reevaluate the consent management tools of years past.

At table stakes, modern consent requirements require technically advanced solutions that honor consumer preferences across every digital surface, from website to mobile apps to backend databases. But for today’s privacy leaders, reassessing consent management tools is not just about compliance—it's about building customer trust and enabling the business to grow with data executive teams can trust.

Keep reading to learn the five urgent reasons industry leaders are reevaluating their consent management solutions, plus what you can do today to help your business stay ahead.

Consent management is foundational to effective privacy programs

Consent management is the backbone of any robust privacy program. With regulations like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) setting a high standard, companies must ensure they obtain, record, and honor user consent efficiently.

Effective consent management platforms (CMPs) facilitate seamless consent collection across multiple touchpoints, ensuring a unified approach to data privacy. By automating consent management, businesses can reduce the risk of human error and demonstrate a strong commitment to user privacy.

Consider the many ways that comprehensive consent management create a strong foundation for your privacy program:

1. Legal compliance: Most comprehensive privacy laws require that organizations obtain clear and informed consent from individuals before collecting and processing their personal data.
2. Data minimization: Effective consent management helps organizations limit data collection to only what’s necessary—aligning with the data minimization principle that not only appears verbatim in laws like GDPR, but is also just a data governance best practice.
3. Accountability and documentation: Modern CMPs provide clear documentation of user consent, which is essential in the event of an audit.
4. Building trust: Transparent and respectful handling of consumer consent fosters trust between organizations and individuals. When users know they have control over their data, they are more likely to engage with a brand and share their information.
5. Enhanced user experience: Offering easy-to-understand consent options—with clear paths to change consent preferences at any point—is not only required by laws like GDPR, but is also a best practice for building customer trust.

Effective consent management goes far beyond just legal compliance; it also fosters trust, empowers users, and ensures privacy practices are aligned with organizational values and goals.

Consent compliance is highly visible and easily auditable

One of the most pressing reasons privacy leaders are reevaluating their consent management tools is that consent is one of the most visible, easily audited pieces of privacy compliance.

While requirements like fulfilling data subject requests (DSR) or data protection assessments can still be audited, it’s a longer process that requires more steps and cooperation from the company in question. On the other hand, when checking for consent compliance, all an attorney general needs to do is scan a company's public facing website and see whether or not their pixels and trackers are passing data with or without consent.

Not only can attorneys general scan a site for consent compliance, but privacy advocacy groups like The Markup, Mozilla, and the Electronic Frontier Foundation can (and have) run similar checks—often with findings that reflect extremely poorly on the organization under the lens. For example:

• The Markup found that Facebook was receiving sensitive medical information en masse from hospital websites.
• In 2023, Mozilla released a report finding that the state of digital privacy was “Very creepy,” after studying a wide range of common consumer technology and services.
• Lawmakers are pushing the Department of Justice to prosecute tax prep companies that, according to a 2022 The Markup report, shared user data with Google and Meta

Many of these examples came from, as we mentioned above, sources beyond regulators’ offices. When advocacy groups, consumers, and curious bystanders can easily audit an aspect of compliance, it’s time to dot your I’s and cross your T’s.

Enforcement has increased significantly—and is only ramping up

Regulatory bodies are ramping up enforcement actions, making compliant consent management more important than ever. Sephora’s $1.2 million settlement with the California attorney general was a clear indicator of the increasing scrutiny on consent, as well as an indicator of what future enforcement might look like.

Up until that enforcement action, it wasn’t totally clear that California’s regulator’s would take browser-based consent signals like the Global Privacy Control (GPC) seriously. For years, it was actually considered an optional piece of a website's consent management process.

And lawmakers’ emphasis on consent hasn’t stopped with Sephora. Headlines are littered with other even more recent examples:

• Advocate Aurora Health, a prominent healthcare provider, agreed to a $12.25 million settlement in response to allegations their use of web tracking technology violated health privacy laws.
• Federal authorities publicly named 130 healthcare firms allegedly using web tracking technologies to collect data without consent.
• A recent Bloomberg report detailed the growing wave of consumer privacy lawsuits alleging the Meta pixel sent information about users viewing habits to Facebook without consent.

By leveraging next-generation consent management tools, businesses can adapt to regulatory changes swiftly to minimize the risk of costly enforcement actions.

Legacy consent solutions leave gaps in company’s consent compliance

While legacy consent management systems provided a temporary patch for the market’s needs after GDPR came into force, consent requirements have evolved significantly—and many of these solutions no longer fit the bill.

1. Limited coverage: Many legacy solutions focus solely on cookie management, ignoring the fact that there are over 200 tracking technologies operating within business environments today. Privacy laws apply to all types of tracking methods, from SDKs to Pixels to LSOs, making it essential for companies to implement comprehensive consent coverage.
2. Lack of automation: Many companies rely on manual processes for tag management, while also handling the multitude of repetitive tasks necessary for honoring user preferences across various data systems—squandering company resources and opening the door for human error.
3. Incomplete data visibility: Relying on outdated data leads to outdated compliance. Many organizations depend on static cookie scans for consent management, resulting in inconsistencies and outdated consent preferences.

As regulatory scrutiny in this area intensifies, it’s vital that organizations pursue with privacy solutions that enhance visibility, minimize manual tasks, and provide real-time data insights.

There are new, better consent solutions on the market today

The market for consent management solutions has evolved, offering innovative tools that simplify compliance and improve user experiences. Modern CMPs like Transcend Consent Management provide full-stack regulation, frictionless user interfaces, and scalable implementation options.

Full-stack data regulation

Full-stack regulation involves comprehensive management of consent across all surfaces in a company’s digital ecosystem, including:

• Website
• Web apps
• Mobile apps
• Secondary websites
• Backend databases
• Managed marketing audiences
• Trackers and pixels
• Server-side vendors

To avoid wasting resources on manual tag management and ensure compliance with modern privacy laws, savvy businesses are adopting automated consent management solutions.

By using a next-generation CMP like Transcend Consent Management, organizations can streamline their compliance efforts, save time and resources, and reduce the risk of non-compliance.

Complete visibility into data collection

To maintain compliance and build user trust, organizations must achieve complete visibility into their data collection activities. Traditional consent management solutions often rely on static cookie scans, which can overlook real-time changes in data tracking practices.

Modern consent management solutions like Transcend Consent Management provide continuous tracker detection across all areas of a company's website—allowing organizations to quickly identify and address potential compliance issues.

Frictionless user experience

In today’s user-focused digital landscape, businesses need to ensure robust compliance while providing a seamless user experience. Legacy CMPs often utilize intrusive banners and disruptive interfaces, which can turn users off and reduce overall engagement.

Transcend Consent Management allows for comprehensive consent management without these intrusive elements, maintaining a smooth user experience that increases overall customer satisfaction.

Granular data tracking and control

To balance data rights with business efficiency, companies must understand granular tracking and data control. Legacy CMPs often force organizations to either shut down their entire marketing stack when a user opts out or allow unrestricted tracking.

In contrast, Transcend Consent Management allows businesses to selectively block tracking data at the network level while keeping essential tags operational. This feature allows organizations to exercise greater control over their marketing activities, respect user preferences, and uphold data privacy.

Swift, scalable implementation

No matter the size or industry of your business, your business needs a CMP that supports quick implementation and scalability. This flexibility allows organizations to adapt swiftly to market changes, new business lines, and evolving regulations.

Setting up Transcend Consent Management takes just minutes, and even large enterprises can go live within three weeks. By adopting a CMP that facilitates rapid scalability, companies can stay ahead of compliance requirements while maximizing operational efficiency.

About Transcend Consent Management

For when your legacy solution relies on static site scans, requires tedious maintenance, and still leaks unconsented data. Transcend Consent Management collects consent and automates enforcement across every interface, from websites to mobile apps, offering your organization:

• Continuous detection of 200+ kinds of trackers across every inch of your site.
• Automatic network-level enforcement—no manual tag manager configuration required.
• Out of the box support for IAB TCF, Google Consent Mode, and Do Not Sell (eg. Meta LDU).

Reach out to learn more.