# Cookie consent and opting out

Use restricted tracking before cookie consent and stop the current visitor's tracking when they opt out.

*Release 3.3 · admin, developer, visitor*

## What it is

INSIDE supports a restricted no-cookie mode before a visitor accepts cookies. In that mode it does not create or restore the normal persistent visitor record. A later opt-out ends the current visitor's conversations and removes their live visitor session.

## Who uses it and why

Administrators agree how the website's consent choices affect INSIDE. Developers connect those choices to the website integration. Visitors accept or withdraw consent through the controls provided on the website.

## Where to find it

Consent controls belong to the website's visitor experience. They are not a separate operator Settings screen. The wording and placement depend on your website integration.

## How it works

Before consent, no-cookie mode omits the normal member identity, contact details, CRM links and ordinary order information supplied by tracking. The restricted visitor has no displayed personal name, linked customer identity or conversations, and does not appear in normal operator visitor listings.

When the integration grants consent, it can reset and reconnect the visitor experience in the new cookie mode.

When an existing visitor opts out, INSIDE:

1. Closes their conversations and records that cookie opt-out caused the closure.
2. Notifies open visitor chat panes so they can close.
3. Marks the visitor as do not track.
4. Removes the visitor and their session from live tracking.

## Configure it

Have your developer connect your consent manager to INSIDE's cookie-mode and reset behaviour. The browser integration's default is normal cookie mode, so the integration must explicitly choose restricted handling when required by your consent design.

Test the initial visit, acceptance and withdrawal flows with Powerfront. Include any custom page data your website supplies.

## Limits and good to know

- No-cookie mode restricts visitor identity and operator interaction. It does not establish that no information is processed or stored anywhere.
- Page addresses, tags and custom page data can still enter tracking. Avoid putting personal information in those inputs before consent.
- Opting out does not erase previously retained history.
- Cookie opt-out and marketing communication preferences are separate choices.
- Your website integration determines the visitor-facing response to consent changes.

## Depends on and works with

### This feature uses

- **Configured in** [Visitor tracking consent and communication opt-ins](VX-012.md): Data Privacy settings define the chat consent prompt and its acceptance and decline choices.
- **Works better with** [Starting, ending and expiring chats](CHAT-001.md): Opting out closes the current visitor's conversations.
- **Works better with** [Visitor identity](VIS-001.md): Accepting cookies allows the browser to use persistent visitor recognition on later visits.
- **Related** [Customer data deletion and recovery](SEC-019.md): Use the separate deletion process when retained personal information must be removed after an opt-out.

### Used by

- **Required by** [Visitor tracking consent and communication opt-ins](VX-012.md): The privacy prompt responds to the visitor's cookie-tracking choice.
- **Configures** [Visitor identity](VIS-001.md): Consent and memory-only tracking determine whether browser identity is saved and restored.
- **Configures** [Visits and returning visitors](VIS-002.md): Memory-only tracking cannot restore a previous saved visit in the same way as persistent tracking.
- **Configures** [Visitor data mapping for targeting](VIS-007.md): Restricted no-cookie tracking omits supplied member identity and member data.
- **Configures** [Visitor actions and events](VIS-010.md): Memory-only visitors do not persist action history in the same way as normal visitors.
- **Configures** [Visitor activity and availability](VIS-011.md): A memory-only visitor is removed when its temporary session is no longer available.
- **Configures** [Live visitors on the floor](VIS-012.md): Memory-only visitors are excluded from the normal current-channel visitor list.
- **Configures** [Visitor browsing and activity history](VIS-020.md): Cookie mode controls whether normal visitor state is saved and restored.
- **Configures** [Basket tracking](COM-019.md): No-cookie tracking follows a different path from normal persisted sales processing.
- **Configures** [Purchase tracking and sales totals](COM-020.md): Normal live sale handling requires cookies to be enabled.
- **Configures** [Visitor data mapping for customer identity](CRM-002.md): Restricted no-cookie tracking omits the member identity and contact details used by member-data mapping.

## FAQ and troubleshooting

### Why can the operator not see a visitor before consent?

The restricted visitor is excluded from normal operator visitor listings and has no conversations.

### Why did the chat close after the visitor changed their cookie choice?

The opt-out operation closes the visitor's conversations and notifies open chat panes.

### Does opt-out delete earlier conversations?

No. Retained information needs its separate deletion or retention process.

### Does no-cookie mode mean no data reaches INSIDE?

No. It suppresses normal visitor identity and persistence, but page context and custom data can still be processed. Check the website's supplied data as part of the integration.