Cookie Banner Defaults to Accept All? Choose Less
Many cookie banners highlight a big Accept All button and hide Reject or Customize in small text. Accepting all lets many trackers follow you across sites. Taking a few seconds to choose reject or customize keeps tracking to a minimum.
TL;DR / Quick Fix
Quick fix: do not tap the big Accept All button by habit. Look for Reject All, or open Customize and turn off marketing and analytics cookies, keeping only necessary cookies. Save the choice and move on. Five seconds now saves weeks of tracking.
Follow these steps
- Look for Reject All first. Scan the banner for Reject All, Reject, or Only Necessary. It is often smaller or on a second screen, but it is usually there.
- Open Customize if no reject button shows. If only Accept All is visible, open Customize, Preferences, or Manage. The detailed switches are where the real choice lives.
- Turn off marketing and analytics. Turn off marketing, advertising, and analytics cookies, and leave only necessary or strictly required cookies on. Necessary cookies keep the site working.
- Save, do not just close. Use the save or confirm button after changing switches. Closing the banner with an X sometimes counts as no choice, and the banner returns.
- Use browser cookie controls too. In browser settings, consider blocking third-party cookies, or clearing cookies on exit, for an extra layer beyond individual banners.
- Expect the banner again after clearing data. If you clear cookies, banners return on your next visit. Repeat the reject choice; it takes seconds once you know where it hides.
What NOT to do
- Do not tap Accept All just to dismiss a banner faster. That tap is the tracking choice, even when it feels like a mere dismissal.
- Do not enable all categories in Customize out of completeness. Each category you enable is a separate permission to track.
- Do not assume a banner with no reject button means you must accept. Look for Customize, or leave the site if no real choice is offered.
- Do not accept all on every site and rely on clearing cookies later. Rejecting first is simpler and more reliable.
Frequently asked questions
Will rejecting cookies break the site?
Rarely. Necessary cookies stay on, so login and shopping baskets keep working. Only tracking and personalization features are reduced.
What if a site forces accept to continue?
You can leave the site, or accept and then clear its cookies after use. A site that offers no reject choice is telling you something about its priorities.
Do I need to do this on every site?
Yes, each site has its own banner. Browser settings for third-party cookies reduce the work, but the banner choice remains per site.