Cookies are small files that web servers send to your browser when you visit sites on the Internet. For years, we have used cookies to track website visitors, provide customized user experiences, and capture data that helps us target ads based on audience behavior. In short, we have used cookies to enable customer segmentation at different stages of the journey.

There are two types of cookies important to this discussion: first-party and third-party cookies. First-party cookies are used by the website you are currently visiting. These small messages allow the website to know who you are in order to accomplish such tasks as keeping you logged in or tracking what’s in your shopping cart as you move from page to page. Third-party cookies are used by sites or services you are not currently visiting. These can be used to follow you around the web so that digital advertisers can use behavioral targeting to serve up ads based on products you have viewed in the past.

The Evolving Landscape

The way we use cookies has evolved rapidly, driven by users’ demands for greater data privacy and control over how their information is used on the web. Laws were enacted such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)⧉ in the European Union and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)⧉ for residents in California. Both of these laws seek to enhance data privacy protections for online users and have resulted in a range of changes to websites around the globe.

While Safari and Firefox have already phased out third-party cookies, Google’s approach has taken a different direction. After years of planning to deprecate third-party cookies in Chrome, with multiple delays pushing the timeline from 2019 to 2023, then 2024, and finally early 2025, Google made a significant reversal in July 2024.

Google’s Major Policy Shift

Instead of eliminating third-party cookies entirely, Google announced it would introduce a new user choice model in Chrome. Rather than phasing out third-party cookies, Chrome now offers users the ability to make informed choices about their tracking preferences through browser settings. This means users can opt in or opt out of third-party cookie tracking based on their personal privacy preferences.

This decision came after Google began restricting third-party cookies for 1% of Chrome users in January 2024 as part of initial testing. The reversal represents a significant shift from the company’s long-standing promise to enhance privacy by eliminating these tracking mechanisms.

What You Need to Know Moving Forward

First-party cookies are safe and are used to capture user activity on websites. With Google’s decision to keep third-party cookies while giving users control, marketers must prepare for a more fragmented tracking environment where some users will opt out while others remain trackable. While making customer segmentation more challenging, customers will be more confident that their privacy is better preserved. Overall, we should consider that a win.

Google’s Privacy Sandbox⧉ continues to develop alternative technologies for advertising and analytics that work without third-party cookies. These include APIs for federated identity management, interest-based advertising, and fraud prevention. Smart marketers should still familiarize themselves with these tools.

Despite Google’s reversal, the broader industry trend toward enhanced privacy protection remains clear. Safari and Firefox still block third-party cookies, and privacy regulations continue to expand globally. Now is the time to invest in first-party data collection, build direct relationships with your customers, and explore cookieless tracking alternatives as ways of achieving effective customer segmentation. Don’t rely solely on third-party cookies, as the landscape may continue to evolve.

Conclusion

Change continues to present opportunities. As users gain more control over their data and new privacy-preserving technologies mature, those who are transparent about data usage and build trust with their audiences will thrive. The marketers who succeed will be those who prioritize customer relationships, invest in owned data assets, and remain adaptable to an evolving digital privacy landscape.

While the cookieless future has been postponed, the journey toward more privacy-conscious customer segmentation practices continues. This is your opportunity to build more sustainable, privacy-forward marketing strategies that will serve you well regardless of future technology changes. Contact us for help with first-party data collection or for building customer relationships.