In our browsing activity, we have all at one point come across a notification pop up asking us to accept website cookies.
WHAT ARE COOKIES?
Cookies are small pieces of data embedded in text files that are used ti identify your computer or device whenever you visit a site.
Data found in a cookie is created by a server when you connect to a particular site and is labelled through a unique ID.
Simply, websites use cookies to remember you and your activities for a more personalized experience. When the cookie is exchanged between your computer and the network server, the server reads the ID and knows what information to specifically serve you.
On May 2018, this data privacy law known as the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) was enforced to allow website owners to receive permission from users to use cookies by giving consent to the data collection.
WHAT ACCEPTING COOKIES MEANS
By “Accepting” cookies, users can experience easy log-ins to sites since the cookies saved on the browser can easily remember one’s credentials.
This can be helpful especially to users who often forget their passwords.
Cookies can also enhance user experience by tailoring your experience to interests. Sites can also create customised advertisements based on previous searches. Websites can use your browsing history to create targeted advertisements.
They can also feature in analytics by analysing time spent on a website or how many times you visited a site.
WHAT DENYING MEANS
By not accepting cookies, some owners may not allow users to use their website while others will make available only a handful of website experience.
As a user, there are however instances which experts suggest are okay to “Reject” cookies.
When visiting unencrypted websites, users are advised not to accept cookies since there is no security to guarantee safety for your data.
Hackers can easily get information such as credit card, contact information and passwords which can be used to commit online crimes.
Users dealing with sites with suspicious activities, mostly which have been flagged by anti-virus softwares are also advised not to accept cookies as important data could be compromised.
Third-party cookies that let advertisers or analytics companies track an individual’s browsing history have also been noted to compromise user data.
TYPES OF COOKIES
Cookies fall in two categories, session and persistent cookies.
Session cookies are used only while navigating a website and as soon as the session ends, session cookies are automatically deleted.
Persistent cookies, on the other hand, remain on a computer indefinitely, although many include an expiration date and are automatically removed when that date is reached.
Users wishing to remove cookies can do so from privacy section under site settings and follow the prompts on the available options to manage or remove cookies.
To protect data against hackers and third party cookies, users are advised to use privacy software in masking their digital fingerprints.
