Reading time: 2 – 3 minutes
Whenever the word “cookie” comes to my mind, I always think of those tasty little flat-baked treats I used to eat along with a glass of milk. But when I got older and became exposed to the world of computing, it brought a new meaning that I sometimes thought as an invasion of privacy.
If the cookie monster eats “cookies” on Sesame Street, the other “cookie” otherwise known as HTTP cookie eats your privacy as you go online whether you like it or not. An HTTP cookie is small piece of text stored by an internet browser to the user’s computer for session authentication and online usage tracking statistics.
While cookies are advantageous for easy online browsing and logging-in sessions, it can however create a matter of privacy concerns. As online security nowadays are becoming more vulnerable, presence of cookies in your computer can make you less comfortable because you’ll never know if you’re being watched.
Most browsers have the option to delete cookies for every internet session you’ve had however, some cookies are so sticky that they even last for months on your PC even if you tried removing them. Some cookies are closely detected by most antivirus software being malware or spyware. There are some websites that work only when the internet browser’s cookies are enabled.
Cookienator
Until recently, I’ve discovered the Cookienator—a light-weight executable program designed to keep users hidden from search engines such as Google and other notorious web-usage trackers by providing a simple and easy to use menu that is also configurable. The Cookienator software is designed to remove potentially harmful cookies stored in your computer for so long.
I’ve just started using the software and from the looks of it, it was pretty cool and worth trying out. It’s hard disk friendly and free to download and use. Go ahead and try the Cookienator and let me know what you have to say.
Suggested for further reading:
- Say Goodbye to Firefox Slowdowns with SpeedyFox Reading time: 2 – 3 minutes Overtime, your Firefox browser can become utterly slow because of the fragmentation of databases. The more add-ons, bookmarks, plugins and themes you add, the slower it loads at start-up and the slower it renders browsing histories up to the point that it freezes, or...
- Get the look and feel of Apple Safari and Google Chrome with QtWeb Internet Browser! Reading time: 2 – 2 minutes As I was researching for an alternative web browser that has strong privacy browsing capabilities which enables not to leave any tracks–cookies, cache, and browsing history among other things(although I know that Firefox 3.1 Beta 3 now has it and IE has it too),...
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{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Modern browsers like Firefox can usually handle disabling cookies on their own. I recommend trying out the “private browsing” feature in Firefox 3.5… it lets you temporarily accept cookies for as long as your “private browsing” session lasts, but clears them (along with any other private information) when you end the session.
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Thanks for the intelligent input. It’s typical for today’s evolving browsers to have “private browsing” capability however, there are really some cookies that stays for an uncertain period. Like what I’ve observed most of the time, my AVG Antivirus detects some cookies as harmful but it has a hard time removing them unless scan is run several times until they’re gone.
I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don’t know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.
Susan