CookieRay – Cookie Banner for Cookie Consent (GDPR/CCPA Compliant) vs SureCookie – GDPR Cookie Consent Banner, Cookie Scanner & Script Blocking

CookieRay is a cookie consent and privacy tooling plugin for WordPress. It stores data on your hosting account and runs in your environment. There is no external SaaS dashboard for site operation. CookieRay helps website owners manage cookie consent settings for GDPR, CCPA, ePrivacy, and other privacy-related requirements. Legal compliance depends on your website setup, third-party tools, region, and how the plugin is configured. CookieRay provides a visitor-facing consent experience, configurable script blocking, cookie discovery from your site, detailed consent records, and a setup dashboard to help you manage cookie consent records and support privacy-related workflows. Cookie consent banner A customizable consent surface with card and bar layouts, live preview in the admin, and nine placement positions. Visitors can Accept All, Decline All, or open a Preferences modal to choose which categories to allow (Necessary, Analytical, Functional, and Marketing). Banner text, colors, buttons, and fonts are editable without writing code. Script blocking Choose Log Only recording or Strict blocking in Settings. In Strict mode, CookieRay delays known tracking scripts until the visitor agrees to categories that match those trackers. Common patterns for services such as Google Analytics, Meta Pixel, Hotjar, HubSpot, TikTok Pixel, and many others are included out of the box. Google Consent Mode v2 When enabled, CookieRay outputs consent state in the visitor’s browser for Google tags (such as GA4, Google Ads, or Google Tag Manager) that you have already placed on your site. Google Consent Mode v2 lets Google tags adjust their behavior based on visitor consent choices while supporting privacy-conscious measurement modes when consent is withheld. CookieRay itself does not open separate server-side uploads of visitor payloads to Google; instead it surfaces JavaScript so tags you load can read consent signaling. Behavior of those downstream tags depends on how you configured Google products. Further reading: Google’s Consent Mode documentation (linked under External Services). Cookie scanner Run a cookie scan from the WordPress admin to detect cookies surfaced on responses from your own site. When an administrator starts a scan, CookieRay queues work on your server and uses the WordPress HTTP API to request public URLs belonging to your site domain (for example the homepage, published content URLs, WooCommerce storefront pages where applicable, and related routes depending on plugins). Cookie names surfaced in responses can be merged with your inventory for categorization alongside the plugin’s bundled tracking-cookie reference data. CookieRay also runs deeper script-discovery passes that analyze HTML fetched from a bounded set of URLs (the embeddable deep scan inspects up to 50 URLs on the same domain, chosen from the XML sitemap when available or from the home page plus recent posts and pages). Scan coverage still depends on plugins, caches, authenticated-only flows, and what responses your site serves to CookieRay’s unauthenticated crawler. There is no recurring unattended scan timetable built into CookieRay. You start scans from CookieRay screens (background processing completes those runs without another manual click). Cookie inventory View, edit, and categorize cookies discovered on your site. Assign cookies to Necessary, Analytical, Functional, or Marketing categories. Bulk-categorize or delete entries. Custom cookies can be added manually, with regex pattern support where appropriate. Consent logs Consent events can be logged with identifiers, statuses, granted categories, page URL, banner version, and timestamp fields available for review. Entries are searchable and filterable in the admin. You can export records as CSV, and export individual receipts as PDF for your record-keeping process. Dashboard See a summarized score guided by configurable checks (blocking mode, categorized cookies, policy link usage, consent expiry and scan recency reminders, whether Google Consent Mode output is enabled, and related items). Use it as onboarding guidance alongside your legal or compliance review. Scan history Review past scans: timing, URLs covered, counts, and summaries of results to track changes over time. Settings Configure consent behavior (Log Only vs Strict blocking), consent expiry, consent log retention, Google Consent Mode v2 toggle, optional data portability export flows, and related options. Banner and behavior settings are stored through WordPress options alongside plugin metadata. Privacy and data handling CookieRay does not send usage data, telemetry, or visitor payloads to CookieRay-operated servers. Consent logs and inventories stay in your site’s database unless you export them elsewhere. Third-party trackers you integrate yourself (such as Google Analytics, Google Ads, Google Tag Manager, Meta Pixel, marketing pixels, embedded chat widgets, and similar vendors) may still collect information according to their own tags, configurations, vendor accounts, regions, and published policies, even when CookieRay delays or respects categories for scripts it recognizes. A WordPress Cron task deletes consent records older than the retention period configured in Settings, whenever WordPress Cron runs normally on your host. Pro Features Scheduled automatic cookie scans Geo targeting – show or hide the banner by country Integration with Google Tag Manager, Meta Pixel, Adobe Experience Platform Trust Badge – “Privacy Protected” badge displayed in the site footer Premium support and priority updates Upgrade to CookieRay Pro Support For questions, bug reports, or help with configuration, visit the CookieRay support page. External Services CookieRay does not send analytics, telemetry, or visitor data to CookieRay-operated servers. 1. Same-site cookie scanner When an administrator runs a cookie scan, CookieRay uses the WordPress HTTP API (wp_remote_get) to fetch public URLs belonging to the same WordPress site — for example the homepage, published post URLs, WooCommerce storefront pages, and sitemap entries. What is sent: Standard HTTP GET requests to your own site’s public URLs. When: Only when an administrator triggers a scan from CookieRay admin screens. Who receives the requests: Your own web server. No data is sent to CookieRay or any third party. Source file: includes/class-scanner.php 2. Google Consent Mode v2 (optional, admin-enabled) When enabled in Settings, CookieRay outputs JavaScript on visitor pages that signals consent state to Google tags you have independently installed (e.g. GA4, Google Ads, Google Tag Manager). CookieRay does not make server-side HTTP calls to Google. What is sent: Browser-side consent signals read by locally loaded Google tags you control. When: When Consent Mode is enabled in CookieRay Settings and visitors load pages that include your Google tags. Who receives downstream data: Google, per your Google account and tag configuration. Google Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy Google Terms of Service: https://policies.google.com/terms Google Consent Mode documentation: https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/9976101

SureCookie is a WordPress cookie consent plugin that helps you scan cookies, display a customizable cookie banner, block non-essential scripts before consent, and store consent logs inside your WordPress database. It is built for site owners, E-commerce stores, agencies, bloggers, and WordPress professionals who want more than a basic cookie notice. SureCookie helps you understand what cookies and third-party services are running on your site, lets visitors manage their choices, and gives you a practical consent workflow without visitor-based pricing. 👉 Try the live demo of SureCookie. Not Just a Cookie Banner A cookie notice can tell visitors that your site uses cookies, but that alone does not manage consent. If analytics scripts, marketing pixels, video embeds, maps, or tag manager scripts run before visitors choose, the banner is only cosmetic. SureCookie connects the banner to the rest of the workflow: scan the site, review detected cookies, block non-essential scripts before consent, store consent logs locally, and keep your cookie policy easier to maintain. How SureCookie Works SureCookie follows a simple WordPress cookie consent workflow: Scan selected pages with the real browser cookie scanner. Review detected cookies, scripts, resources, and third-party domains. Organize cookies into consent categories such as Essential, Functional, Analytics, and Marketing. Enable script blocking so non-essential scripts wait for consent. Show the cookie consent banner and preference modal to visitors. Store consent logs locally in WordPress for review and export. Generate or connect a cookie policy page that reflects your cookie setup. This makes SureCookie more than a WordPress cookie banner. Many cookie plugins focus only on the visitor-facing notice, while SureCookie focuses on what happens before and after it: cookie detection, script blocking, consent records, and policy support. Free Features Included The WordPress.org version of SureCookie includes the core consent workflow: Cookie consent banner: Show a clean banner or notice for visitors. Preference modal: Let visitors review and manage cookie categories. Accept, Accept All, Decline, and Preferences buttons: Control the button text and order. Real browser cookie scanner: Scan selected pages using a browser-based scanning service. Cookie categories: Use Essential, Functional, Analytics, Marketing, and Uncategorized categories. See managing cookie categories. Custom cookies: Add and manage cookies manually when needed. Script blocking: Block non-essential scripts before consent is given. Resource blocking: Manage scripts, iframes, embeds, and objects found during scans. Consent logs: Store visitor choices inside your WordPress database. Consent log filters: Search and filter logs by action, country, IP, and session ID. Consent PDF export: Export individual consent records for documentation. Consent retention settings: Control how long consent logs are kept. Monthly automatic scanning: Schedule recurring scans on the free plan. Scan history and change detection: See what changed between scans, including newly detected cookies and domains. Rule-based category suggestions: Get suggested categories for newly detected cookies. Cookie policy page: Generate a page with dynamic cookie tables. Re-consent controls: Add a Cookie Preferences link through a shortcode or menu item. Re-request consent: Ask all visitors to review choices again when needed. Google Consent Mode support: Send consent states to supported Google services. WP Consent API support: Share consent state with compatible WordPress plugins. Multilingual support: Work with WPML and Polylang for banner and admin text. RTL support: Display frontend cookie policy content correctly for RTL languages. MCP and WordPress Abilities support: Enable AI assistant access to SureCookie management actions when supported. No visitor-based limits: SureCookie does not charge by traffic or monthly visitors. Free vs Pro Clarity Everything listed above is in the free plugin. Advanced workflows are reserved for SureCookie Pro: weekly automatic scans, email scan digests, auto-apply behavior, compliance guard workflows, geographic targeting (which applies CCPA-style opt-out rules per region), and consent forwarding. Compare on the features page or see plans and pricing. Real Browser Cookie Scanner SureCookie uses a browser-based scanning service at https://library.surecookie.com/ to inspect selected pages. See how the cookie scanner works. Instead of only reading static HTML, the scanner loads your pages in a real browser environment. This helps detect cookies and resources that appear after page load, through tag managers, or through third-party scripts. The scanner can help identify: Analytics, marketing, advertising, functional, and preference cookies WooCommerce and WordPress session cookies Third-party domains and resources Tag manager loaded and dynamically injected scripts Monthly Automatic Scanning When enabled, SureCookie runs scheduled monthly scans through WP-Cron. The scan uses the same scanner engine, respects the configured scan scope, and records the latest scan history. Full setup is in the automatic scheduled scanning guide. The scan history can show: Newly detected cookies Removed cookies Recategorized cookies Newly detected third-party domains Whether the scan was manual or automatic The last scan date and cookie count Script Blocking Before Consent SureCookie can block non-essential scripts before the visitor gives consent. When blocking is enabled, SureCookie processes the frontend HTML and converts matching resources so they do not execute until the relevant cookie category is allowed. It can handle scripts as well as embedded content such as iframes, embeds, and objects. This matters because a banner alone does not stop tracking. SureCookie is designed to connect consent choices with technical enforcement. The script blocker also includes safeguards so it skips admin pages, REST requests, AJAX requests, feeds, JSON responses, XML responses, and scanner bypass requests. The resource and script blocking guide covers how scripts, iframes and embeds are matched. Customizable Banner and Preferences SureCookie gives you control over the visitor-facing consent experience. You can customize: Banner message and description Rich text banner content Accept, Accept All, Decline, and Preferences button labels Button order Banner position and width Banner logo Banner animation Background overlay Preference modal heading and description Cookie category labels and descriptions Custom CSS Visitors can accept all cookies, decline non-essential cookies, or open the preferences modal and choose specific categories. See customizing banner content and banner layout for every option, and custom CSS for banner styling if you need finer control. Consent Logs Stored Locally SureCookie stores consent records inside your WordPress database. This is different from many SaaS consent management platforms where consent records live on an external platform. With SureCookie, your consent logs stay on your WordPress site and can be reviewed from the admin area. Consent logs can include: User session ID Consent action, such as accepted, declined, or partially accepted Cookie category preferences Masked IP address Timestamp Country Admins can view, search, filter, delete, and export logs from WordPress. SureCookie also includes retention settings so you can control how long logs are kept. See understanding consent logs and exporting consent logs to PDF or CSV. Cookie Policy Page and Generator SureCookie includes a cookie policy generator that can create a Cookie Policy page for your website. The generated page uses native WordPress blocks and includes a dynamic shortcode that displays cookie tables grouped by category and provider. The cookie policy content can include: Cookie categories Cookie names Purpose or description Duration Domain Last updated timestamp A table of contents when multiple categories are available You can edit the generated policy page in the WordPress editor and keep the dynamic cookie table connected to your scanned and manually added cookies. Walkthrough: how to generate a cookie policy page. Re-Consent and Re-Request Consent Visitors should be able to change their choices later. SureCookie includes a re-consent shortcode: [surecookie_reconsent_button] You can use it to add a Cookie Preferences button on your site. SureCookie can also add a virtual Cookie Preferences item to a selected WordPress navigation menu. Admins can also re-request consent from all visitors. This is useful after updating your cookie policy, adding new tracking tools, changing categories, or making a major consent workflow change. See the re-consent guide. Google Consent Mode When enabled, SureCookie sends consent states for supported Google services and updates them when visitors change their preferences. Setup steps: setting up Google Consent Mode v2. It maps SureCookie categories to Google consent signals, detects Google services from enqueued scripts or the page HTML, and hides block toggles that Google Consent Mode already manages. WP Consent API SureCookie reads its consent cookie and syncs the visitor’s consent state so compatible WordPress plugins can check consent using the standardized WP Consent API flow. Default category mapping includes: Essential to functional Functional to preferences Analytics to statistics Marketing to marketing Developers can customize mappings through filters. Multilingual and RTL Support SureCookie includes multilingual compatibility for WPML and Polylang. It can register and translate banner text, button labels, preference modal text, category labels, and related frontend strings. It also includes RTL support for cookie policy layouts. MCP and WordPress Abilities When enabled, AI assistants and compatible tools can use structured SureCookie abilities to manage settings, cookie categories, consent logs, cookie management, and site scanner actions. Scanner start actions still require care because they contact an external scanning service. Who Should Use SureCookie? SureCookie is a good fit for: WordPress site owners and agencies who need a cookie consent banner across client sites E-commerce stores and publishers using analytics, ads, pixels, embeds, or marketing tools Businesses running tag managers, heatmaps, video embeds, maps, forms, or CRM and conversion tracking Developers who want a WordPress-native consent workflow with hooks and APIs, and consent logs kept inside WordPress Important Legal Note SureCookie provides technical tools for cookie scanning, script blocking, consent collection, consent logging, and cookie policy management. No WordPress plugin can guarantee legal compliance on its own. Privacy and cookie requirements depend on your website, visitors, region, policies, data processing practices, and legal obligations. For legal advice, consult a qualified legal professional. External Services SureCookie uses external services for cookie scanning, site verification, and geolocation. Cookie Scanning SureCookie connects to https://library.surecookie.com/ to provide real browser-based cookie scanning and smart categorization. When you run a scan, SureCookie sends the selected page URLs to the scanning service. A browser-based scanner visits those pages and detects cookies, scripts, resources, and third-party domains. Scanner Registration and Authentication Before the first scan, SureCookie performs a one-time registration handshake with library.surecookie.com/api/register. The request sends: Site URL WordPress admin email SureCookie version A temporary installation nonce (one-time, random) The scanning service verifies the site through a temporary REST endpoint, then returns site-specific credentials and a verification token. These credentials are stored locally in a non-autoloaded WordPress option and are used for authenticated scan requests. Consent IP Logs and Region Detection For consent logging and country detection, visitor IP addresses may be processed through MaxMind-backed region detection through SureCookie’s service. This helps SureCookie record the country in the consent log. IP addresses are masked before being stored in your WordPress database. MaxMind attribution: https://www.maxmind.com Service URLs SureCookie scanning and geolocation service: https://library.surecookie.com/ SureCookie privacy policy: https://surecookie.com/privacy-policy/ MaxMind: https://www.maxmind.com Data Stored Locally SureCookie stores plugin settings and consent data in your WordPress database. This can include: Banner and preference modal settings Cookie categories Custom cookies Scanned cookies Scanned resources Scan history Consent logs Cookie policy page ID Automatic scan settings Scanner credentials Consent logs and scan results can be viewed, exported, or deleted from the WordPress admin. Privacy and Data Processing SureCookie processes data through its API service at library.surecookie.com for cookie scanning, scanner authentication, and region-aware consent logging. Here is what happens and why. What We Send to SureCookie Services During the one-time scanner registration and site verification flow, SureCookie sends the site URL, the WordPress administrator email, the SureCookie version, and a temporary installation nonce. The scanning service uses these to verify your site and issue credentials, then returns a verification token that SureCookie exposes at a temporary REST endpoint for domain verification. After registration, scan requests use site-specific credentials stored locally in WordPress and do not resend the admin email. When a scan runs, SureCookie sends selected page URLs to the scanning service so a real browser can detect cookies, scripts, resources, and third-party domains. What Is Processed and Why Cookie scanning: Selected page URLs are scanned in a real browser environment to detect cookies, scripts, resources, and third-party domains. Cookie categorization: Detected cookie details, such as names, domains, and durations, are used to help categorize cookies. Region detection: Visitor IP addresses may be processed through MaxMind-backed region detection to determine country-level location for consent logs. IP addresses are masked before being stored in your WordPress database. Consent records: Consent choices, timestamps, category preferences, and session details are logged locally in your WordPress database. Where Data Lives Consent logs, scan results, settings, and scanner credentials are stored in your WordPress database. Data sent to library.surecookie.com for scanning and geolocation may be temporarily processed for those features. SureCookie does not sell this data or use it for advertising. Data Retention and Control Consent logs and scan results can be viewed, exported, or deleted from your WordPress admin. Consent log retention periods are configurable in plugin settings. Scanner credentials are stored locally in a non-autoloaded WordPress option. Security API communication uses HTTPS. Scan requests use authenticated site credentials after the registration flow. Site credentials are used to sign later scan requests. Because visitor data and selected page URLs can be processed through SureCookie services, you should mention this in your site’s privacy policy where appropriate. Full details: https://surecookie.com/privacy-policy/ For questions about data processing, visit https://surecookie.com/support/. Useful Links SureCookie Website Documentation Support Forum Privacy Policy Live Demo About Brainstorm Force SureCookie is built by Brainstorm Force, the team behind Astra and other widely used WordPress products.