Consent journey map
Each ask in order, with its purpose, duration, and withdrawal path.
Progressive consent prompts
Ask a person for each permission when the system needs it, with the reason and how to withdraw it. A withdrawal stops the automation it covered and does not cost them core service.
- 1 Evidence
- 2 Authority acts here
- 3 Decision
- 4 Consequence
- 5 Challenge
- 6 Reconsideration
- 7 Correction
Where it acts
At Authority, one of the seven stages every consequential decision passes through. Each prompt is the person granting, or withdrawing, the system's permission to act on them.
Steps
Put the mechanism in motion
3 steps, in order. Check each one off as it is done; the records below show the work was done.
0 of 3 steps complete
Records this mechanism keeps
What a team running this mechanism keeps, and what each record is for.
Withdrawal wording
Short text on how to withdraw, used the same way in the interface, email, and help pages.
Pause control checklist
Confirms before release that each step has a pause that stops automated use and routes the case to staff.
Reuse-ready snippets
Copy policy, audit, and incident language
Use these snippets in requirements, audits, and postmortems with the mechanism permalink.
Policy requirement
Policy requirement (MEC-02 Progressive consent prompts) - Ask for consent in stages, each with a stated purpose, duration, and way to withdraw. - When consent is refused or withdrawn, the covered collection or automation stops, and the person keeps core service. Reference: https://ethotechnics.org/mechanisms/patterns/progressive-consent
Product requirement
Product requirement (MEC-02) - Each consent request states its purpose, how long it lasts, and how to withdraw it. - The withdrawal control stays visible after consent, and using it does not remove access to core or safety features.
Audit evidence checklist
Audit evidence checklist (MEC-02) [ ] The consent record lists each ask with its purpose, duration, and withdrawal path. [ ] Withdrawal instructions match across the interface, email, and help pages. [ ] Production tests show that a withdrawal stops the covered processing and stays in effect.
Postmortem trigger
Postmortem trigger (MEC-02) Trigger review when a withdrawal fails or is ignored, or when automation restarts without the person's renewed consent.
Example usage
Staging consent in a tax-filing assistant
One scenario with each part of the mechanism in place.
How it plays out
A tax-filing assistant asks to read last year's return only when the person requests a refund estimate, and says the estimate will be rougher without it. It asks again, separately, before pre-filling forms. A pause control on every screen stops automated use and hands the session to a staff preparer.
Anti-patterns
Common failure cases and counterfactuals
Each case passes on paper and fails in operation. The counterfactual shows what would have worked.
One-shot consent bundles
Every permission is requested on the first screen, with no reason, duration, or way to withdraw each one.
Counterfactual: Each permission is asked for when it is needed, with its reason, duration, and withdrawal path.
Exception: A single ask is acceptable when it covers only what the core service cannot run without, and says so.
Opt-out that does not stick
The toggle turns off, but the automation keeps running or restarts after an update without telling the person.
Counterfactual: A withdrawal stops the covered processing, is logged, and is confirmed to the person on screen.
Exception: Processing the service cannot run without, such as fraud checks on a payment, can continue if it was disclosed before the person chose.
Diagnostics for this mechanism
Tools that size the risk this mechanism addresses.
Diagnostic
Delegation audit
Walks a team through one workflow against six questions and returns an exposure score, the permissions nobody can justify, and whether its decisions can be undone. Start here when the system keeps no decision records yet; use the record conformance checker once it does.
Cite this page · v1.2.1 · updated Oct 6, 2026 · CC BY-SA 4.0
APA
Ethotechnics Institute. (2026). Progressive consent prompts (MEC-02). Ethotechnics Institute. https://ethotechnics.org/mechanisms/patterns/progressive-consent
MLA
Ethotechnics Institute. "Progressive consent prompts (MEC-02)." Ethotechnics Institute, 2026, https://ethotechnics.org/mechanisms/patterns/progressive-consent.
Chicago
Ethotechnics Institute. "Progressive consent prompts (MEC-02)." Ethotechnics Institute. Oct 6, 2026. https://ethotechnics.org/mechanisms/patterns/progressive-consent.
BibTeX
@misc{mechanism_progressive-consent,
title={Progressive consent prompts (MEC-02)},
author={Ethotechnics Institute},
year={2026},
howpublished={Ethotechnics Institute},
url={https://ethotechnics.org/mechanisms/patterns/progressive-consent},
version={v1.2.1}
}
RIS
TY - WEB TI - Progressive consent prompts (MEC-02) AU - Ethotechnics Institute PY - 2026 UR - https://ethotechnics.org/mechanisms/patterns/progressive-consent ER -