Privacy compliance is non-negotiable — and it shapes what GA4 can measure.
We check for Google Consent Mode v2 implementation, validate the default consent state command (set before gtag.js loads), verify update commands fire when users accept or deny, and confirm regional consent settings respect EU vs. non-EU rules.
Consent Mode v2 became required by Google in March 2024 for any advertiser using remarketing or measurement in the EU/UK. Without it: remarketing audiences stop refreshing, conversion modeling is disabled, and you risk GDPR / UK-GDPR fines. With it incorrectly configured: you measure nothing, or you measure everything regardless of consent — both bad outcomes.
A US brand expands to the EU without updating their cookie banner to use Consent Mode v2. Six months in, their EU Google Ads remarketing audience drops to near-zero, revenue from repeat EU customers craters, and they don't realize the cause is consent — not their products.
A news site implemented Consent Mode v2 but set the default to 'granted' instead of 'denied'. Privacy regulators audit them after a complaint. The site faces a major fine plus mandated changes, all because one default value was wrong.
A SaaS company in Germany has a consent banner but never implements the update command. Users who accept cookies are still treated as 'unconsented' — so the entire conversion funnel from EU visitors shows 90% lower conversion than reality, leading to wrong product decisions.