Short answer
A cookie banner is the visitor interface for consent. Consent Mode v2 is a Google tag signal. TCF 2.3 is an advertising-industry framework for sharing consent choices with participating vendors. They solve different layers of the same problem and should not be treated as interchangeable.
Most SMB advertiser sites need a clear banner plus technically correct tag gating and, where Google tags are used, Consent Mode v2. TCF is usually relevant to publisher and ad-tech use cases with participating vendors, not every business website.
What to check
- Banner: choice, preference centre, notices, and withdrawal.
- Consent Mode v2: Google storage and advertising consent signals.
- TCF 2.3: standardized vendor/purpose signalling and TC String ecosystem.
- Google Certified CMP requirements: a separate publisher-product requirement, not a synonym for Consent Mode.
Practical steps
- List your tags, advertising products, vendors, and target regions.
- Identify whether you are an advertiser, a publisher, or both.
- Implement a banner and enforcement for every non-essential tag.
- Add and test Consent Mode v2 when Google tags need consent signals.
- Choose an approved external CMP for TCF/publisher needs; then independently verify live behaviour.
Common mistakes
- Installing TCF because a site merely runs Google Ads.
- Using Consent Mode defaults while allowing non-Google pixels to fire freely.
- Assuming a CMP badge confirms all website scripts are blocked.
- Generating or modifying a TC String without a registered CMP.
Important boundary
Know the scope
GDPRChecker can operate as the consent layer for standard SMB workflows and monitor an external CMP. It does not issue TC Strings or present itself as an IAB TCF CMP.