Skip to main content

Block YouTube Embeds Until Consent

YouTube embeds set marketing/advertising cookies the moment the iframe loads — even without autoplay.

Step 1: Replace src with data-src​

<!-- Before: loads immediately -->
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VIDEO_ID"
  width="560" height="315" frameborder="0"></iframe>

<!-- After: blocked until marketing consent -->
<iframe
  data-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VIDEO_ID"
  data-consent-category="marketing"
  width="560" height="315"
  frameborder="0"
  allowfullscreen>
</iframe>

Show users what they're missing and give them a quick consent path:

<div class="video-consent-wrapper" data-consent-category="marketing">
  <iframe
    data-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VIDEO_ID"
    data-consent-category="marketing"
    width="560" height="315" frameborder="0">
  </iframe>
  <div class="video-placeholder">
    <p>This video requires marketing cookies.</p>
    <button data-cf-action="accept-category" data-cf-category="marketing">
      Accept and play
    </button>
  </div>
</div>

Step 3: Use YouTube's privacy-enhanced mode​

Even with consent, use the no-cookie domain to minimise tracking:

https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/VIDEO_ID

Verification​

Open DevTools → Network before consenting. No request to youtube.com or youtube-nocookie.com should appear. After accepting marketing consent, the iframe should load and the network request should appear.