Cookies and Cross-Context Behavioral Advertising

What it is

Poshmark tracks your activity on its site and on other websites using cookies and similar tools, and shares that tracking data with advertising partners so you can be shown targeted ads elsewhere on the internet.

Why it matters (compliance & governance perspective)

This cross-site tracking means your Poshmark browsing and purchase behavior can follow you across the web and influence what ads you see on unrelated platforms and websites.

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Consumer impact (what this means for users)

Your activity on Poshmark, including items you view and purchase, may be used to build an advertising profile that follows you across other websites and apps, which is a form of cross-context behavioral advertising that California and other state privacy laws recognize as a form of data sharing requiring opt-out rights.

What you can do

Institutional analysis (Compliance & governance intelligence)

REGULATORY LANDSCAPE: Cross-context behavioral advertising using cookies and tracking pixels is a primary target of CPRA's sharing definition, which covers disclosure of personal information to third parties for cross-context behavioral advertising without monetary exchange. The FTC has issued guidance on deceptive tracking practices and the obligation to disclose material data uses. EU and UK users are protected by the ePrivacy Directive and GDPR, which require prior informed consent for non-essential cookies, a standard that goes beyond the opt-out model described in the policy. GOVERNANCE EXPOSURE: High for EU and UK users; medium for US users. The policy's approach of disclosing cookie-based advertising and providing opt-out mechanisms satisfies the opt-out standard applicable under US state privacy laws, but for EU and EEA users the consent requirement under the ePrivacy Directive requires affirmative prior consent for advertising cookies, not merely an opt-out. The adequacy of Poshmark's cookie consent mechanism for non-US users should be independently assessed. JURISDICTION FLAGS: EU, EEA, and UK users face the most significant exposure given the consent-based framework for cookies under the ePrivacy Directive. California users have specific rights to opt out of sharing for cross-context behavioral advertising under CPRA. Illinois, which has enacted biometric privacy legislation, is less directly implicated by cookie tracking but may be relevant if device fingerprinting approaches biometric data standards under BIPA. CONTRACT AND VENDOR IMPLICATIONS: Data sharing arrangements with advertising technology partners, including demand-side platforms, data management platforms, and analytics providers, should be reviewed to confirm they qualify as contractual arrangements under CCPA or CPRA rather than third-party sales. Consent management platform configurations should be audited for compliance with EU and UK requirements, including the requirement that consent be freely given, specific, informed, and unambiguous. COMPLIANCE CONSIDERATIONS: A comprehensive cookie audit should be conducted to inventory all tracking technologies deployed on the Poshmark platform, classify them by purpose, and verify that consent or opt-out mechanisms are correctly implemented for each user geography. The cookie consent banner and preference center should be reviewed for compliance with ePrivacy Directive and GDPR standards for EU users. Records of consent should be maintained as required under GDPR.

Applicable agencies

Applicable regulations

Provision details

Other risks in this policy

• Business Partner Data Sharing for Marketing high
• Public Content Exclusion from Deletion Rights medium
• California Data Sale and Sharing Opt-Out medium
• Data Collection Scope and Categories medium
• User-Generated Content Public Visibility medium
• Data Retention and Account Deletion medium

Related Analysis

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