Hashed Emails: A Privacy-Friendly Alternative to Third-Party Cookies

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[...] If Google removes cookies and IP addresses from Chrome, it removes the two passive methods - requiring no action from the user - allowing advertisers to individually identify users on the web. Advertisers can drop cookies on a browser, or advertisers and ad tech companies can read users' IP addresses, which provide a semi-stable identifier to identify a user later. The alternative to passive data collection is a first-party data strategy. Many publishers and advertisers are now collecting email addresses in anticipation of a world where there would be no other usable identifier. However, this requires a significant user footprint and an alternative identification strategy. [...]

[...] The hashed email alternative Presentation of hashed emails According to a study by Radicati Group, a person has an average of 1.75 email addresses. The 'hashing' process simply takes these normal email addresses and encodes them using a cryptographic hash function. This process creates a obscured string of characters, or hash, that now represents the email. Each hash has a fixed number of characters, depending on the type of hash function used. It is considered that a hash has a one-to-one correspondence with an email address. [...]

[...] Thus, using hashed emails instead of Google's Privacy Sandbox stands as an alternative for advertisers such as Criteo. With hashed emails, individual users can be targeted more precisely while maintaining their anonymity. Advertisers like Criteo can continue to deliver personalized ads with anonymous identifiers, which is important to ensure that ad campaigns deliver optimal results and meet advertisers' wishes. Furthermore, using hashed emails allows companies like Criteo to be competitive by offering innovative solutions that meet advertisers' needs while protecting users' privacy. [...]

[...] Application of hashed emails in this specific context The collection and use of consumer data is one of the main privacy protection issues related to CTV advertising. Advertisers use the data to target their ads to specific audiences, but the way these data are collected and used can raise privacy protection issues. For example, some CTV platforms may collect data without the viewer's knowledge or consent, or share data with third parties without the viewer's knowledge or consent. The use of third-party cookies is another privacy protection issue related to CTV advertising. [...]

[...] The emergence of Privacy Sandbox Google Chrome plans to completely eliminate third-party cookies in 2024. With 63% of the global market, this decision marks a significant change in how the industry approaches addressability in advertising. To preserve the effectiveness of advertising while protecting consumers' privacy, Google has launched Privacy Sandbox, a series of alternative solutions to third-party cookies. Google has developed a set of private-by-design APIs to replace third-party cookies, with the goal of finding a balance between protecting consumers' privacy and the needs of marketers and publishers to deliver relevant and targeted ads. [...]