What is the TapAd_DID cookie?
This cookie stores a unique, persistent identifier used for cross-device tracking, audience segmentation, and synchronizing user identities across multiple digital advertising platforms.
Table of Contents
About TapAd_DID
| Vendor | Tapad |
|---|---|
| Cookie Domain | tapad.com |
| Category Category The functional category of the technology, such as Web Analytics or Social Media. Learn more | Advertising & Paid Media |
| Consent Category Consent Category The consent category this cookie most commonly falls under across sites we scan, normalized into four standard categories. Learn more | Targeting & Advertising |
| Prevalence | Very Common |
| Popularity Popularity Popularity is calculated from our dataset of 4.5B+ cookies analyzed across hundreds of millions of web pages. Learn more | Found on 16.5% of scanned pages |
| Expiration Type | Timestamp |
| Expiration Duration | 29 days |
| Party Type Party Type Whether the cookie is first-party or third-party. Learn more | 3rd-Party |
| Risk Level Risk Level Rates how sensitive the data stored by this cookie is (High, Medium, or Low) based on data classification and distribution. Learn more | Medium |
| Vendor Privacy Policy | https://www.tapad.com/global-privacy-notice |
| Vendor Website | https://www.tapad.com |
What is the purpose of TapAd_DID?
The TapAd_DID cookie is a third-party tracking cookie set by Tapad (acquired by Experian in 2020), a technology company specializing in cross-device digital identity solutions. Tapad uses this cookie to assign a unique, pseudonymous identifier to the user's web browser. As the user visits various websites, Tapad observes signals such as IP addresses, user agent strings, and timestamps. It uses probabilistic processing logic to map likely connections between the user's different devices (e.g., smartphones, tablets, computers, and connected TVs).
The data collected helps construct the "Tapad Graph," a global cross-device digital identity graph. Advertisers, agencies, and technology platforms use this graph to gain a holistic view of the consumer journey, enabling use cases such as programmatic ad targeting, audience segmentation, media measurement, and personalized marketing across multiple devices. The cookie acts as the foundational key to unify browser activity into a persistent cross-device profile.
What are the Privacy Risks of TapAd_DID?
Risk Level: Medium
This cookie captures a persistent, unique pseudonymous identifier used to track the user's device across multiple websites for behavioral profiling and targeted advertising. It functions strictly as a behavioral advertising ID used for cross-site tracking, which aligns entirely with a medium risk level.
How to Remove TapAd_DID from a Website
To remove this cookie, website administrators must locate and remove the Tapad tracking pixel or tag (often labeled "TapAd Pixel" or "TapAd Tapestry") from the website's source code or tag management system. If the Tapad integration is delivered indirectly through a third-party advertising partner, Data Management Platform (DMP), or Demand-Side Platform (DSP) via cookie syncing, administrators will need to configure those specific platforms to disable data sharing and synchronization with Tapad.