Borlabs Cookie: Instructions for the Cookie Banner WordPress plugin

Although the GDPR has been around for a long time, many are still struggling with its implementation. And the ePrivacy Regulation based on it is further exacerbating the situation. There are some very useful plugins for WordPress that support you in complying with the requirements. One of them – the WordPress plugin Borlabs Cookie – is presented in more detail.

On 29 July 2019, the European Court of Justice declared cookie opt-ins to be a cautionary obligation. As the operator of a website, you should therefore no longer ask yourself whether you use a cookie banner, but how you implement it in order to be on the safe side in terms of data protection law. Further information on the ECJ ruling is available from lawyer Dr Thomas Schwenke in the data protection generator blog.

The Borlabs Cookie plugin is an opt-in solution for WordPress that helps you to implement the requirements of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the upcoming ePrivacy Regulation. With this tool, you can easily control first and third-party cookies and have them confirmed by your website visitors via a so-called “cookie box” (also known as a “cookie banner”).

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The Borlabs Cookie Dashboard

The statistics on the dashboard are particularly interesting for you. Here you can see in detail how often users have consented to your cookie settings.

Essential: Cookies enable the basic function of the website

Statistics: e.g. Google Analytics

Marketing: e.g. Facebook Pixel

External media: e.g. Google Maps

Under the statistics you will find a quick start guide, which will make it easier for you to get started with the cookie plugin. The system status is also displayed on the dashboard, which you can use at any time to check whether the plugin is working properly.

Borlabs Cookie Settings

General settings

In the general settings, the Borlabs Cookie Plugin can be activated and some other settings can be made at the time of activation of the cookies.

On this page you also have the option of making settings for the so-called “cross domain cookies”. This means that all cookie settings that are made via a specific path are also transferred to all other specified domains. This is particularly interesting if you operate several websites in the form of subdomains, for example, and at the same time do not want users to have to make new cookie settings each time.

Cookie Box

General settings

With the help of the general settings for the cookie box, you can determine whether it is displayed on your website or not, in which form it should be integrated (HTML / JavaScript) or whether content should be blocked until the cookie settings have been accepted.

You can also define your data protection page and your legal notice here, which will be displayed within the cookie box.

Layout, animation, presentation & logo

In the cookie box settings, you can also make settings or changes to the layout, animation, display or logo. This allows you to individually determine the layout and colour accents of the box, how it is animated and which logo should be displayed.

Buttons & Texts

Of course, you can also use this menu to customise the output of the buttons and the texts within the cookie box. You will also find an option at the bottom of the settings to make adjustments using CSS.

Cookie groups

Cookie groups are individual groupings into which all the cookies you use are categorised. By default, the groups Essential, External media, Marketing and Statistics are stored in Borlabs Cookie.

These groups include, for example, Facebook Pixel, Google Analytics, Google Maps, Vimeo, Google AdSense and many more. I will show you exactly what this looks like under the “Cookies” menu. This is where you define the individual cookies and their grouping.

You can edit the individual cookie groups, determine their position in the cookie box and activate or deactivate them. Of course, you can also add new groups at any time.

Cookies

As already mentioned under the menu item “Cookie groups”, the cookies you use can be clearly categorised into groups. This gives users the option to fully accept cookies from a specific group later on. This is because these are also displayed in the cookie box.

Under the menu item “Cookies” you will find all the groups you use.

In each of these groups, you can add a new cookie by clicking on the “Add new” button.

Step 1: Select a service

Step 2: Setting up the service

In the service settings, you define all the details for the cookie. The Borlabs Cookie Plugin already provides you with the most important information, which you can theoretically use one-to-one.

Nevertheless, you can change the ID, status or cookie information here, for example. The respective tracking ID, pixel ID or URL must of course be stored individually for each service so that it can be controlled via the Borlabs Cookie Plugin.

The great thing is that you also have lines of code available for additional HTML or JavaScript.

Content Blocker

Content blockers can be used to block iFrames within videos or embedded content. However, you can customise the display of the block message.

The standard content that is blocked by the Borlabs Cookie Plugin right from the start includes

• Facebook
• Google Maps
• Instagram
• OpenStreetMap
• Standard (All external content)
• Twitter
• Vimeo
• YouTube

You can of course customise or edit any of the content blockers already stored here, e.g. by setting the status to “on” or “off”. You can also add new content blockers.

In the respective settings, changes can be made to the name, the URL for the privacy policy and the host(s), among other things.

Here you will also find a shortcode that you can use to block the provider’s content on your website. Under additional settings, you can also store corresponding API keys if required.

Of course, you can also store your own HTML, JavaScript or CSS code here:

Example: Live view of the Content Blocker

Google Maps / Open Street Map

YouTube / Vimeo

Facebook / Instagram

Content Blocker: General settings

Here, for example, you can create a host allow list in which the content blockers should not be active.

Representation

You can also make the settings for the display of the block message here. This means: defining a font and its size, determining the colours for text, button or link colour and much more.

Script Blocker

With the help of the integrated script blocker in the Borlabs Cookie Plugin, individual JavaScripts can be blocked and executed. This is particularly advantageous if, for example, you are using a third-party plugin that sets cookies which, according to the GDPR, require consent.

This means that the Script Blocker allows you to block cookies from third-party plugins or the corresponding scripts and only enable them with your consent (opt-in).

Import & Export

The import and export function allows you to easily import and export general settings, cookie settings and content blockers.

To do this, you only need to copy the settings from the respective export box and paste them into the respective import box on another WordPress installation, for example.

Licence

You can view your current licence information at any time in the licence settings – for example, the current licence status, the licence type and also the term for updates and support.

If you want to delete your licence from the domain you are currently using because you might want to use it on another domain, you can also do this via this menu item.

You can also use the plugin here within a test environment without the need for a licence.

Useful shortcodes for the privacy policy

Borlabs Cookie offers you the option of inserting shortcodes in your privacy policy that allow your visitors to see which cookies they have accepted at any time.

On the one hand, there is a so-called cookie list in which all cookies accepted by a user are listed:

There is also a button that users can use to change their consent to the individual cookie groups:

Other useful functions

CMP in IAB Europe’s Transparency and Consent Framework

Borlabs Cookie has supported the official IAB framework since 2020, which was introduced in 2018. With the help of this framework (TCF), consumers have a choice as to which data may and may not be processed by large advertising networks.

The aim of IAB Europe’s TCF (Transparency and Consent Framework) is to create a uniform standard for a GDPR-compliant solution in digital advertising. Borlabs provides a fully functional beta version for download when a licence is purchased.

Accessibility

All selection options in the Cookie Box can be accessed by visually impaired or blind people using the keyboard.

Prioritisation mode

Opt-in codes can be executed directly in the head, i.e. prioritised, if required. You can easily define this yourself in each cookie.

Multilingualism

Borlabs Cookie can easily be used in multiple languages. For the implementation of multilingualism in conjunction with the plugin, Borlabs Cookie recommends WPML and Polylang in particular: more on this in this article. Borlabs Cookie can also be used with other plugins such as Multilingual Press or Weglot.

Google Tag Manager

If you use the Google Tag Manager for your tracking tools such as Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, etc., you can also use it in a GDPR-compliant manner with the help of appropriate settings in conjunction with Borlabs Cookie. Read more in this article.

Borlabs Cookie Alternatives

In the following overview, I would also like to introduce you to two other plugin alternatives to Borlabs Cookie, which are also convincing.

Borlabs Cookie Alternative: WP DSGVO Tools

The WP GDPR Tools plugin (legalweb.io) is also a consent tool for WordPress (with a paid premium version), which also offers an integrated data protection and legal notice generator. Just like Borlabs Cookie, it offers embedding for YouTube, Vimeo, Google Maps and Instagram, for example. The range of functions is very similar and only differs in a few points.

Borlabs Cookie Alternative: Pixelmate

Pixelmate was one of the first GDPR plugins available for WordPress. Initially, its functions were limited exclusively to Facebook Pixel and Google Analytics. Pixelmate now offers – just like the other Premium Consent Tools – numerous other integrations for e.g. YouTube, Vimeo, Google Maps and many more.

The WordPress plugin also has a script blocker – just like Borlabs Cookie. This means that this tool can be used to block scripts until consent is given, if necessary.

Borlabs and alternatives in comparison

	Borlabs Cookie	WP DSGVO Tools	Pixelmate
Embeddings	YouTube, Vimeo, Google Maps, Instagram & dynamic detection of iFrames + Script Blocker	YouTube, Vimeo, Google Maps, Instagram & dynamic recognition of iFrames	YouTube, Vimeo, Google Maps, Instagram & dynamic detection of iFrames + Script Blocker
Tag Manager	Google Tag Manager, Matomo Tag Manager	Google Tag Manager, Matomo Tag Manager	X
Cookie Scanner	X	✓	X
Google Fonts	✓	✓	X
Layouts / Designs	✓	✓	✓
Multilingualism	✓	✓	✓
Accessibility	✓	✓	X
Languages	FR, DE, EN, IT, NL, PL, ES	AT, DE, EN, ES, IT, FR, HU	DE, EN
Data protection / imprint generator	X	✓	X
Opt-in & opt-out	✓	✓	✓
CMS compatible	WordPress	WordPress, Drupal, Typo3, Magento	WordPress
Test phase	X	✓	X
Price from	39,00 €	132,00 €	39,00 €

My conclusion about Borlabs Cookie

I myself already use the Borlabs Cookie Plugin on several projects and am absolutely satisfied with it. For me, it is one of the best GDPR and e-privacy solutions currently available on the market.

Although the plugin is only available in a premium version, the wide range of functions and the clearly organised backend make the investment worthwhile.

With the use of this cookie plugin, you have a variety of options to choose from in order to comply with all regulations of the current GDPR and the upcoming ePrivacy Regulation.