Cookies - A Complete Guide, Feel free to add/edit etc... Options

[-David-]

Cookies - A Complete Guide

- This infomation is compiled from all over the web.

What is a Cookie?

A cookie is a text-only string that gets entered into the memory of your browser. This value of a variable that a website sets. If the lifetime of this value is set to be longer than the time you spend at that site, then this string is saved to file for future reference.

What are the purposes of cookies?

Cookies make the interaction between users and web sites faster and easier. Without cookies, it would be very difficult for a web site to allow a visitor to fill up a shopping cart or to remember the user's preferences or registration details for a future visit. Web sites use cookies mainly because they save time and make the browsing experience more efficient and enjoyable. Web sites often use cookies for the purposes of collecting demographic information about their users. Cookies enable web sites to monitor their users' web surfing habits and profile them for marketing purposes (for example, to find out which products or services they are interested in and send them targeted advertisements).

Are cookies dangerous?

In a nutshell the answer is no. Cookies are small pieces of text. They are not computer programs, and they can't be executed as code. Also, they cannot be used to disseminate viruses, and versions of Internet Browsers such as IE, Firefox etc.. allow users to set their own limitations to the number of cookies saved on their hard drives. However, as i said in the previous paragraph, some cookies do track internet browsing and provide a certain level of infomation that the user may not warm to. The truth is that revealing any kind of personal information opens the door for that information to be spread, but we are talking about primitive internet usage and not your bank details.

How do Browsers handle Cookies?

Most browsers offer the following cookie choices:

• Accept all cookies
• Accept only cookies that get sent back to originating server
• Disable all cookies
• Warn me before accepting a cookie.

How to Delete and Control Cookies?

You can easily delete cookies from your computer. You can read how to do this here
You can also control the amount of cookies that make their way onto your computer. You can read how to restrict various cookies here

If you are interested in reading further, I recommend that you read one of the following recommended sites:

• The "How Stuff Works" Cookie guide
• The Webopedia Guide to Cookies
• Cookie Central

David

This post has been edited by D-Trojanator: Dec 16 2006, 04:54 AM

[King_Tut]

Thanks a lot. Very simple and very informative.

Great job.

King_Tut

[Batgirl1979]

This might be a stupid question but is there anyway to protect a certain cookie so that it doesn't get deleted when you empty your cookies?

[Animal]

What browser are you using?

[buddy215]

Ccleaner has a tool where you drag the cookies you want to keep in to the "saved cookies". The rest it will delete while cleaning up your computer. Takes seconds to run it once installed.
Just click on "tools" then choose "cookies" and drag the cookie(s) you want to save.

http://www.ccleaner.com/ During install of Ccleaner you will be offered the Yahoo Toolbar. UNcheck if not wanted.

[Batgirl1979]

To Animal: I am using IE 6

To Buddy: I will think about using the program suggested. I was using ATF cleaner and just not selecting cookies and manually deleting all but the ones I wanted to keep but that is very time consuming. Could I d/l Ccleaner and get rid of ATF? Does it serve the same purpose?

[buddy215]

Both serve the same purpose. Yes, you can keep or remove the ATF program.
You will find that Ccleaner has more options/tools I think. It has a secure delete function too. Overwrites deleted files 3 or 7 times. I would not recommend using the registry cleaning function or any registry cleaner.

[buddy215]

I wonder how many of you knew that Adobe Flash has "hidden cookies"? I just found out about this by reading the article in the link below.
http://www.imasuper.com/66/technology/flas...privacy-killer/


http://www.macromedia.com/support/document..._manager07.html
To delete all the Flash Cookies currently being stored on your machine:

1. Go to the Settings Manager in the link above (Website Storage Settings)
2. Go to the far-right tab
3. Click “Delete all sites”

To prevent websites from storing any more information on your computer:

1. Go to Settings Manager
2. Click the Second Tab from the left (Global Storage Settings)
3. Set the Storage Settings slider to None
4. Uncheck “Allow Third Party Flash Content to store data on your computer

There are several other “privacy” settings on the other tabs, but don’t be persuaded. Most of those privacy settings have to do with whether or not websites can access your microphone and webcam. There isn’t a single cookie option on any of the privacy tabs on the Settings Manager.

This post has been edited by buddy215: Dec 9 2008, 05:57 AM

[Swordie]

O.O Flash has Cookies.. Wow. That's why sometimes it's vulnerable..


This post has been edited by Swordie: Mar 1 2009, 02:06 AM

[JJ2K]

Or download Crap Cleaner it removes all Cookies, and probably the Macromedia ones described above.

[Lors]

hi... i hVE trouble accessing into a website after i clear private data on my mozilla.... the site says that the cookies are not allowed and needs to verify the security to allow access on the site... though i already put the site on exemption and allow cookies on that site.. i still cant access... oh and btw... i also cant access the site from IE..