Understanding and resolving issues with the scanning and categorizing of cookies on your website is necessary for successful cookie management. The cookie scanning process performed by WebToffee’s GDPR Cookie Consent plugin may occasionally encounter difficulties that impede its successful completion. If you come across a situation where a cookie scan on your website fails, it’s crucial to identify the underlying issues and implement suitable solutions to ensure accurate cookie management. Below, we list some probable reasons for scan failures and offer corresponding solutions. Once you’ve addressed the issue, initiate a fresh scan to validate the resolution.
Firewall on the website blocking scanner access
If you have a firewall on your website, it could inadvertently block your IP address from performing scans on your website. Consequently, the cookie scan carried out by the plugin would be unable to access the website content and collect the required information for the scan.
Solution:
- Temporarily Disable the Firewall: You can temporarily disable the firewall on your website during the cookie scan, which allows the plugin to access your website without any restriction. However, we do not recommend this option due to the potential risks involved. This approach might expose your site to security vulnerabilities and possible attacks.
Website blocking headless browsers used by the scanner.
The scanning mechanism uses headless browsers to access and analyze your website’s content. These browsers navigate pages, interact with their elements, and collect information about the cookies used. However, some websites adopt methods that block the functioning of these browsers, making it difficult for the plugin to perform its scan effectively.
Solution: Enabling Headless Browsers
Configure your website’s security settings to enable headless browsers specifically for scanning. By giving access to headless browsers used by the scanning process, you ensure that the analysis of your website’s cookies is accurate and complete.
JavaScript errors on the website interfere with the scanner’s functionality
JavaScript errors on your website can influence the scanner’s functioning. When the scanner encounters JavaScript errors while navigating your site, it might be unable to properly analyze its content, including identifying and categorizing cookies.
Solution: Identify and Fix JavaScript Errors
Identify and resolve the JavaScript errors that are affecting your website. This ensures that the scanner can function properly and accurately assess the cookie usage on your website.
Low website configuration
Limited resources or capabilities of a website can impact the scanner’s effectiveness. In such cases, the scanning process might fail to proceed smoothly.
Solution: Adjust the scanning speed
Contact us to adjust your website’s scanning speed. Reducing the scanning speed makes the process more manageable for websites with lower configurations, preventing disruptions that might occur during the scanning process.
The website is not accessible from outside
When the website is configured to restrict external access, the scanner cannot connect to and navigate the website’s content. This hinders the scanner’s ability to effectively analyze the cookies and other aspects of the website’s data.
Solution:
- Configure your website settings: Change/adjust your website’s settings to allow access from outside sources, which involves reconfiguring security settings or access controls that might be currently preventing external entities from interacting with your website.
If you’re unsure about the cause of the scan failure, consider initiating a re-scan of your website. If the problem continues to persist even after re-scanning, contact us.
