Are Web Cookies Evil?
Did you know that cookies can record every information about you and your browsing patterns? In this article, we will explain what web cookies are, how they work, and are they as evil as a lot claim?
We always hear about cookies and that they are the root of all problems in terms of data collection.
The cookies that we hear about are called HTTP Cookies. HTTP cookies are small pieces of code that are placed into your computer or cell phone browsers by a website when you visit it. They collect information about your browsing activities on that site and distinguish you from others on the internet. This information can include what pages you visited, the pages you viewed and how often, and even personalizing your web browser to serve you more efficiently, which is not a bad thing in itself. Without the HTTP cookies, you would have to log in every time you click on any link on the website, and online shopping wouldn’t be impossible because cookies are responsible for saving your shopping cart. To understand why cookies are necessary, you have to know their types.
HTTP cookie types
HTTP cookies come in two types:
The first type is called session cookies, and this is the innocent type of cookies. These session cookies work while you are on the website, and they disappear as soon as you close the website and its data disappears with it. This type of cookie has many uses, one of which is that it keeps you logged in to the website and activates the shopping cart system in online shopping.
The second type and which is the one that causes controversy due to its misuse is called Persistent Cookies. This type of cookie can sit on your browser indefinitely(But most of them have an end time) and are responsible for the collection of your data and identifying your browsing patterns on the internet like the products or your searches(not limited to the website you’re on)
Consequently, this exposes you to better ads for you, which is called personalization, which means improving your browsing experience according to your personality.
The problem here comes from corporate greed, not because cookies are a bad invention. Many websites place cookies from other companies known as third-party cookies to collect more data and increase their income.
The solution:
Of course, by now you are asking yourself what can I do to prevent this and if there is a solution, it’s very simply just do the following steps:
- Head over to setting in chrome
- Click on Privacy and security
- Click on Cookies and other site data
- Click on Block third-party cookies
Also, some websites allow you to opt-out of third-party cookies through their privacy policy.