What is the OTZ cookie?
OTZ is an HTTP cookie set by Google on the .google.com domain. It usually appears alongside other Google cookies whenever a page loads a Google service (for example Google Maps, an embedded video player, or another Google widget), or when a site integrates Google scripts or modules.
The cookie is placed by Google, not by the website owner, but it shows up in the context of the visited site because of the third-party resources it loads.
What data it stores
OTZ stores a technical identifier generated by Google's systems, used to distinguish and group requests coming from the same session or visitor. The exact format of the value is not publicly documented by Google and may vary; it should not be assumed to be a simple counter or an explicit date.
Data collected through this cookie is sent to Google's servers as part of its analytics and service-optimization infrastructure.
What it is used for
Based on publicly available information, cookies of this kind within the .google.com domain family are used by Google to analyze how its embedded services are used (usage statistics, performance testing, and optimization of those services).
For the website owner, this cookie's presence is an indirect consequence of embedding a Google service, rather than something the site configures directly.
Does it require consent?
CookieFix classifies OTZ under the statistics category. Under the GDPR (Regulation 2016/679) and the ePrivacy Directive, statistics cookies are not strictly necessary for the website to function, so they require the visitor's prior consent before being set.
Website owners should list this cookie in their cookie policy and ensure the script that generates it only runs after the visitor has given consent for the statistics category.
How to block or delete OTZ
Visitors can delete or block OTZ through browser settings (managing per-site cookies or clearing stored cookies for google.com), as well as through tracker-blocking browser extensions.
- Manually deleting cookies in browser settings
- Private/incognito browsing
- Third-party cookie-blocking extensions
For website owners, a consent management platform (CMP) such as CookieFix can automatically block the scripts that generate such cookies until consent is given, preventing premature setting and reducing compliance risk.
Frequently asked questions
It's an HTTP cookie set by Google on the .google.com domain, associated with embedded Google services and used for analytics purposes.
It typically lasts 1 month, after which it expires automatically from the browser.
CookieFix classifies it as a statistics cookie, meaning it requires the visitor's consent under GDPR and the ePrivacy Directive.
You can use a consent management platform that automatically blocks Google scripts until the visitor accepts the statistics category, or manually control when the related Google service loads.