Snowplow JavaScript Tracker 2.11.0 released with GDPR context

We are pleased to announce a new release of the Snowplow JavaScript Tracker. Version 2.11.0 introduces a method for attaching information about the GDPR basis for processing to all events tracked, as well as changes to the test and deployment process and a bugfix for form focus events.

NB. This release introduces a change to how assets are hosted – rather than hosting the tracker on CloudFront, we now publish the asset to the GitHub release. Users who have previously relied on the CloudFront hosted asset must host the tracker on their own CDN, as is recommended practice. More detail in the New deployment process and Upgrading sections.

Read on below the fold for:

1. Tracking GDPR basis for processing with the GDPR context
2. New deployment process
3. Updates and bug fixes
4. Upgrading
5. Documentation and help

1. Tracking GDPR basis for processing with the GDPR context

This release introduces the enableGdprContext method, which once enabled appends a GDPR context to all events. This allows users to easily record the basis for data collection and relevant documentation, and enables a straightforward audit flow for all events.

enableGdprContext takes four arguments:

• GdprBasis (required string enum, must be one of the following values: consent, contract, legalObligation, vitalInterests, publicTask, legitimateInterests)
• documentId (string)
• documentVersion (string, max 16 chars)
• documentDescription (string)

It is called as follows:

window.snowplow('enableGdprContext', 'consent', 'abc1234', '0.1.0', 'this document describes consent basis for processing' <span class="p">);

Documentation can be found here

2. New deployment process

Previously to this release, the Javascript tracker was published as a public CloudFront asset that could be called from anywhere – this made it simpler for new users to get started with Snowplow tracking. We recommend hosting the tracker themselves in the same CDN as their other assets, tying the availability of the tracker to the availability of the site. This also mitigates any risk of the centralised asset becoming compromised. This has always been our best practice guidance and with this release we have decided to establish a new process which enforces this as policy.

The tracker asset is now published as a Github Release (the sp.js file) – which can be hosted on your own CDN – we recommend that it is hosted on the same domain in which the tracker is called. Snowplow BDP customers should contact [email protected] for assistance with the upgrade process.

There are additional advantages to doing this:

• Upgrading tracker versions can now be managed more easily by rotating the hosted asset rather than changing client-side tracking code (where changes are non-breaking).
• Some Adblockers designed to block third-party tracking won’t allow the javascript to load from an external domain even if it’s used for first party tracking – hosting on your own domain resolves this problem.

3. Updates and bug fixes

Other updates and bugfixes include:

• Core: Send focus_form ‘type’ field as ‘elementType’ (#731)
• Update Sauce Connect version (#735)
• Ensure that the intended version is deployed (#739)

4. Upgrading

The tracker is available as a published asset in the 2.11.0 Github release:

To upgrade, host the sp.js asset in a CDN, and call the tracker from there.

There are no breaking API changes introduced with this release.

5. Documentation and help

Check out the JavaScript Tracker’s documentation:

• The setup guide
• The full API documentation

The v2.11.0 release page on GitHub has the full list of changes made in this version.

Finally, if you run into any issues or have any questions, please raise an issue or get in touch with us via our Discourse forums.