When You Reject Cookies, You Might Be Agreeing to Arbitration

11 hours ago

Harbor Freight's cookie banner stated that clicking any button, including 'Reject All Cookies,' or continuing to browse constitutes agreement to the Terms of Use, which included an arbitration clause and class action waiver.
The court found the banner was reasonably conspicuous due to same font size, red bolded hyperlinks, and placement directly to the left of the buttons, distinguishing it from the Chabolla case.
The court accepted that the banner was displayed to all users after October 2024, including plaintiff Alba, who visited in 2025 and clicked 'Reject All Cookies.'
Alba's argument that rejecting cookies should not imply acceptance of terms was rejected; the court enforced arbitration, sending the case to arbitration.
The case illustrates how companies can use cookie banners to bind users to Terms of Service, even for reject actions, but also notes that another plaintiff's claims were stayed because they acted before the arbitration clause was added.

Dickovers are modal panels or popovers that websites use to force unwanted interactions, often for cookie consent, violating user privacy and frustrating users.
Websites exploit GDPR and similar laws by repeatedly showing cookie-consent dialogs, despite the availability of Global Privacy Control (GPC) signals that browsers can send.
Companies falsely claim that they cannot store a 'don't spy' cookie under legitimate interest, but privacy laws actually allow such exceptions.

Mark Zuckerberg testified in a landmark lawsuit alleging Instagram and YouTube are addictive by design, facing bereaved parents.
Prosecutor Mark Lanier raised concerns about Meta Ray-Bans potentially identifying anonymous jurors via facial recognition.
The case (KGM v Meta et al) involved a plaintiff, Kaley, who claimed social media addiction caused body dysmorphia and mental health issues.

The US Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit ruled that Texas cannot enforce a law requiring websites to block minors from harmful speech.
The law's monitoring and filtering requirement was preempted by Section 230 of the federal Communications Decency Act.
Tech groups CCIA and NetChoice challenged the Texas SCOPE Act and won a preliminary injunction, which the 5th Circuit upheld.

Supreme Court ruled that constitutional privacy protections apply to cellphone location history.
Justice Elena Kagan wrote for the 6-3 majority that users do not forfeit privacy by using ordinary phone features.
Justice Samuel Alito dissented, arguing no expectation of privacy for voluntarily shared data.

Canadian site blocking has evolved from targeting fixed domain names to allowing updates without new court orders.
A new Federal Court order expands blocking to cover any 'similarly infringing platforms' under different brands, not just copycats.
Rightsholders can add new pirate sites using a simplified procedure without court approval, unless an ISP objects within five business days.

Dickovers are modal panels or popovers that websites use to force unwanted interactions, often for cookie consent, violating user privacy and frustrating users.
Websites exploit GDPR and similar laws by repeatedly showing cookie-consent dialogs, despite the availability of Global Privacy Control (GPC) signals that browsers can send.
Companies falsely claim that they cannot store a 'don't spy' cookie under legitimate interest, but privacy laws actually allow such exceptions.

Mark Zuckerberg testified in a landmark lawsuit alleging Instagram and YouTube are addictive by design, facing bereaved parents.
Prosecutor Mark Lanier raised concerns about Meta Ray-Bans potentially identifying anonymous jurors via facial recognition.
The case (KGM v Meta et al) involved a plaintiff, Kaley, who claimed social media addiction caused body dysmorphia and mental health issues.

The US Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit ruled that Texas cannot enforce a law requiring websites to block minors from harmful speech.
The law's monitoring and filtering requirement was preempted by Section 230 of the federal Communications Decency Act.
Tech groups CCIA and NetChoice challenged the Texas SCOPE Act and won a preliminary injunction, which the 5th Circuit upheld.

Supreme Court ruled that constitutional privacy protections apply to cellphone location history.
Justice Elena Kagan wrote for the 6-3 majority that users do not forfeit privacy by using ordinary phone features.
Justice Samuel Alito dissented, arguing no expectation of privacy for voluntarily shared data.

Canadian site blocking has evolved from targeting fixed domain names to allowing updates without new court orders.
A new Federal Court order expands blocking to cover any 'similarly infringing platforms' under different brands, not just copycats.
Rightsholders can add new pirate sites using a simplified procedure without court approval, unless an ISP objects within five business days.

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