ICO Defines Cashback Tracking Cookies as ‘Strictly Necessary’

Today, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has effectively clarified cashback tracking as ‘strictly necessary’, exempting this affiliate model from the consent requirement under PECR.

In an update to its site, the ICO outlined its stance on cookies for reward services, stating:

“In order for a cookie to meet the strictly necessary exemption, it must meet one of two criteria: The cookie is for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic network; or

Where storage of access to a cookie is strictly necessary for the provision of a service that has been requested by the user or subscriber.”