On 26 May 2011, the European Commission made the controversial 'Cookies Directive' law. It applies to the UK and all European countries. It mandates that the use of cookies on European business websites must be disclosed and explicit consent for their use be obtained from users, however in the UK the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) has suggested that it is sufficient to work on the basis of implied rather than explicit consent. You can find more helpful information about cookies here.