The Cookie Controversy Essay Research Paper The

The Cookie Controversy Essay, Research Paper

The Cookie Controversy

Most of us know cookies as tasty treats that are baked in the oven but now there is a new kind of cookie and it is stirring up privacy issues with Internet users. A cookie is a text-only file that gets entered into the memory of a web browser. Various web sights use cookies to help with on-line sales and services, tracking popular links, and demographics. When you visit a sight that requires you to enter your name, a password, or other types of information that information is usually put into a cookie that gets stored on your computer. With the cookie in place you usually won t have to enter the information again in future visits to the same web sight. As this all seems pretty harmless and even convenient it can lead to severe trouble.

Microsoft s Internet Explorer and Netscape s Navigator are both manufactured to accept cookies as a default. With your browser set up to accept cookies your terminal automatically receives them without notifying the user. Many people do not realize that after they have entered their credit card number (even if on a secure server) it is available to anyone and everyone else who uses that particular computer. Once a cookie is set it can only be deleted manually.

Whatever your use for the Internet is, you are only as anonymous as you want to be. Revealing any kind of personal information opens the door for that information to spread. While cookies themselves do not gather that information, they are used as a tracking device to help people who are gathering information. As information is gathered about you, it is associated with the value they keep in your cookie. For this reason, cookies have become an increasing topic of discussion in the online world.