Learn how to create a scan policy to detect unwanted tags, or ensure desired tags are implemented across your digital property.

Tag Inspector is a industry leading tool that helps our clients:

Login to Tag Inspector, select Scanner in the top left of the application, then select "Tag Rules." Select "Create a New Tag Rule."

This will open the "Add a Tag Rule" pop-up screen, here you will name the Tag Rule, enter the email address you want to be notified in the case of a violation, then select if you want to create a Whitelist or Blacklist style policy. Be sure to create a Tag Rule name that is logical for your property, as scan rules can be implemented on a per site basis. Select "Save Tag Rule" when complete.

In the next step you will be able to edit the rules for the specific Tags that you will be validating in the scan policy. Select "add condition" to create a rule for each tag you want to validate in the scan.  

*Tag Rules created as a whitelist will include only Tags that are "allowed" or "required." If a Tag is found that is not in the list it will be considered a violation, and you will be notified via the email you specified.

*Tag Rules created as a blacklist will by default accept any tags. Tags that are set to "required" but not found, and "not allowed" but found will raise a violation. Tags set as "allowed" will not raise a violation if the tag is found or not found.

In the left drop down box select the tag that you would like to create a policy for. In the right drop down box select if the Tag is "Required," "Allowed," or "Not Allowed" based on the internal policy your organization has set for this tag.

The "Manage" button allows you to set more specificity to the rule for a given tag. In the example above I only want the rule to pass if the Facebook Pixel was loaded by Google Tag Manager, loaded any other way the rule will fail.

Adding additional rules will continue to narrow the specific requirements for the Tag behavior. In the above example the Facebook Pixel must be loaded through Google Tag Manager, and be on any pages of the website containing "product" in the URL. Any instances of Facebook Pixel not meeting these two requirements will raise a failed state. Note that additional rules on a Tag are a "and" statement, passing some of the rules and not others results in a violation.

To add more tags to the policy select "Add Condition," until you have all the Tags you want defined. Then select "Save Tag Rule" at the bottom.

Now that you have a Whitelist/Blacklist policy defined for your digital property, the next step is to use the policy on a scan. This powerful feature of Tag Inspector will help you determine if your site is in adherence to the strategy set forth by your organization in regards to tagging. 

To use the Tag Policy you created in a scan select "Start a New Scan" in the top right of the application.

Enter the URL of the website you would like to scan, select the number of pages you would like to scan and select "Next Step."

In the Scan options screen select "Advanced Options."
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In the "Apply Policy to This Scan" dropdown menu you will see a list of the Tag Rule policies you have created, select the appropriate policy for the website you are scanning. Then select "Next Step."

Select the frequency of the scan, then select "Begin Scan." 

When the scan is complete you will be notified via the email you specified if any tag violations were detected in the scan, and Tag Inspector will create a report of all the violations. The report will list the violating tag, and the URL the tag was found.

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