Moz

Overview

Moz is an established SEO software company founded in 2004, widely recognised for introducing the Domain Authority (DA) metric — a logarithmic scale from 1–100 that predicts a domain's ability to rank in search engine results. In addition to DA, Moz publishes Page Authority (PA), spam scores, and link profile metrics that are referenced across the digital marketing industry. On third-party websites, Moz's presence typically takes the form of Domain Authority badges, link count widgets, and MozBar-powered overlays that publishers and agencies embed to demonstrate the strength of their web properties.

What This Script Does

Moz embeddable widgets load JavaScript from moz.com and CDN infrastructure on mozbar.moz.com and assets.moz.com. The scripts render data visualisations that query the Moz Link Explorer API to display live metrics for the embedding domain.

Cookies and identifiers set:

• mozbar_session — First-party session cookie scoped to moz.com, set when a visitor clicks through to the Moz platform from an embedded widget; expires at session end.
• moz_referral — First-party attribution cookie tracking which embedded widget drove a visit to Moz.com; typical expiry 30 days.
• _moz_uid — Long-lived first-party identifier used to stitch widget engagement events to a Moz platform account if the visitor is logged in; expiry up to 365 days.

Data transmitted per widget load:

• Page URL and referrer of the embedding page
• Widget type and DA/PA metric displayed
• Timestamp and user agent string
• Interaction events (hover, click-through to Moz platform)
• Attribution click data when referral cookies are set

CDN and script filenames: widget.js, mozbar-embed.js served from widget.moz.com. API calls go to lsapi.moz.com/linkscape/url-metrics/ for live metric retrieval.

Widget engagement data feeds Moz's internal analytics on widget distribution and conversion paths from third-party embeds to Moz Pro trial signups.

Consent & Compliance

Moz embedded widgets are classified under the analytics category. While the visual display of SEO metrics is informational, the attribution tracking (referral cookies, click-through attribution) and engagement analytics constitute non-essential third-party data processing. Under GDPR Article 6 and the ePrivacy Directive, cookies set for measuring widget engagement and attributing referrals are not strictly necessary for any service explicitly requested by the site visitor — they require prior opt-in consent. Under CCPA/CPRA, the collection of interaction data, device identifiers, and referral attribution by Moz as a third party must be disclosed in the host site's privacy policy. Moz as a US-based processor participates in the EU-US Data Privacy Framework, enabling data transfers under GDPR adequacy provisions. Site owners should ensure their privacy notices list Moz as a third-party analytics sub-processor when embedding widgets.

Should You Block This Without Consent?

Yes. Moz embedded widgets set analytics and attribution cookies and transmit engagement data to a third-party platform. The widgets are not essential to the host site's functionality. Block them until the visitor consents to analytics tracking.