Blocking is the part that makes the banner mean something. With it on, tracking scripts do not run until the visitor agrees to their group.
How it works, in plain words
Before a page leaves your server, the plugin looks through it for scripts that match a known service or one of your own patterns. Each match is parked: it stays in the page, but in a form the browser will not fetch or run. When a visitor accepts that script's group, the browser rebuilds it with its real address and it runs then. Scripts come back in their original order, so a library still loads before the code that uses it. Returning visitors who already said yes get their scripts back on every page automatically.
Why it is safe with caching plugins
The parked page is identical for every visitor, so a cached copy is correct for all of them. Whether the banner shows, and which scripts come back, is decided in each visitor's own browser from their own stored answer. Nothing about one person's decision is saved into the cached page. After you first switch the banner or blocking on, clear your page cache once so older copies are replaced.
The two switches
On the Blocking tab, under Holding trackers back:
- Block the services below until the visitor agrees to them. On by default.
- Block embedded players and maps too, and show a placeholder in their place. On by default.
Videos and maps
A blocked YouTube video, map or other embed is replaced by a placeholder the same height, so the page does not jump. It shows a message (by default This content is hidden until you accept {category} cookies.) and a button (Accept and show it). Pressing it turns on just that one group and leaves every other answer alone. You can edit both under The placeholder. {category} becomes the group name and {vendor} the service.
What blocking can and cannot catch
- Caught: any script in your page's HTML that matches a rule, and any embedded player or map.
- Caught: Google tags, through Consent Mode, even inside a tag manager.
- Not caught: a script written into the page by another script after it has loaded. Govern those inside your tag manager.
- Not caught: a tracker on a different server or subdomain, in your email, or server-side tracking that never touches the browser.
Structured data and page templates are left untouched, and nothing is rewritten inside your WordPress admin.