What is a Tracking Cookie?

Trogan

Hi everyone!

I usually run all the important things like Ad-Aware, SpyBot, My Norton Anti-Virus to clear whatever is finds but Ad-Aware always seems to find a thing called a 'Tracking Cookie, It finds Dozens! All the Tracking Cookies always seem to be located into the same folder everytime.

What is a Tracking Cookie and how can I stop getting them?

also, I was thinking of DELETING the folder they enter but don't know if thats a good idea.

Thanks to everyone HERE!!!!!!!! :ukflag:

I'v also attached a picture of Ad-Awarei showing the Tracking Cookies!

Linc

Tracking cookies are small files that web sites use to track where you go on the internet. They're generally harmless, but you should still probably rid yourself of them regularly if you're concerned about the privacy issue.

If you're using Internet Explorer, you can set your cookie preferences under
Tools -> Internet Options -> Privacy (tab)

If you delete their folder, I'm pretty sure IE will just recreate it anyway.

Important Edit: Not all cookies are tracking cookies. If you block all cookies, some web functionality will be blocked to you. For instance, Short-Media uses a cookie to keep you logged in between visits. This type of cookie just stores information about your login here that is only accessible by this site and doesn't do anything else (e.g. it does not 'track' you or do anything else you wouldn't want it to do). If you block all cookies, you would not be able to stay logged in here between browser sessions. This applies to most other sites you log in to as well.

Trogan

Thank You General Keebler. If Tracking Cookies harmless and Ad-Aware gets rid them then thats OK.

Thanks for your help, its appreciated

Dexter

Just clear your cookies daily.

In Internet Explorer:

Tools -> Internet Options -> Delete Cookies.

That's all there is too it.

What Keebs said about setting cookie preferences does work...but depending on your browsing habits, will either keep you out of sites you want in to (if you do not accept cookies, some sites do not work) or if you have set for prompt, you may see dozens of prompt dialog boxes which will drive you nuts.

Dexter...

Trogan

Thanks Dexter. I think i'l stick to cleaning my cookies daily. its lets complicated lol

Straight_Man

Ok, first of all, all tracking cookies are not always ata mining cookies. Most sites that want heavy usage stats use tracking coolies, but those that want even more info use data mining tracking cookies. No, don't delete the folder, run Ad-Aware more often.

The only other things you can do that help at all are to set cookie settings to allow only session cookies and with SOME browsers, not to allow third party server cookies-- but not allowing third party cookies could backfire on some sites. I also block anything from Alexa or from atdmt.com, but not with cookie settings-- those settings are gotten by forcing both to be restricted sites in IE, and to be domains I totally block cookies from in Mozilla-- this last choice is my personal preference, it breaks some sites but I do not use those sites anyway, so for me it makes sense but for you it might not.

This site can store some things in cookies, but they do not data mine and track you after you have left the site like some data miner cookies CAN do. what I do is this-- I let Mozilla store my passwords, it Close-to-PGP encrypts them. tHEN, I block all but session cookies except for certain sites, and block all cookies from others. What I see again and again as tracker cookies that also are flagged as data-miners, those get the domain's cookie privileges blocked.

So, what browser do you have??? IF IE, you can use Zones and assigning domains to Restricted Zone in part to help limit the real BAD cookies, but most bad cookies you get do not act bad alone, they use some software also (spyware to trojan-like things) to help do what those info greedy folks want (cookies should be mostly or all text, by themselves, its the other stuff you should really crack down on). I'm of the school, where, if a site wants info about where I'm going when not on that site, I block just that off-site stuff as much as possible. So far, this site is one that does very little of that kind of thing folks might think bad if any at all. That is one reason I hang here.

HTH some to explain cookies and exactly what to really avoid. But I run adaware two-three times a week also. And clean my internet cache of other things than cookies 3-5 times weekly if surfing on the Windows box. on the Linux box, I surf more and clean less often, and my favorite is Mozilla because I know how to configure it now after many years of using it.

I only use IE to get what I need to get done on sites that do not read right for Mozilla or Opera. This site basically works for Mozilla, though some stock vBulletin sites do not. Shorty did some good work making vBulletin work better with Mozilla than some other admin\coders have on other vBulletin forums. I don't always agree with anyone on EVERYTHING here, but that is IMHO in large part. So, take this last with 3-4 grains of salt if it rubs the wrong way for you.

BUT, I can configure Mozilla easier (for me) to stay tight and limit what I want to limit than I can IE even after the latest service packs and latest cumulative patch for IE. Consider Mozilla, I can show you how to use its config settings for all sorts of things like cookie limiting and selective cleaning. I can get it to block or unblock things right in the config structure built into it, and do so more to my taste than I can in IE.

Trogan

Straight_Man I appreciate that you took your time too write the useful information.

I been thinking of getting Mozilla but since i'm not the only person using my home computer i'l just stick with IE.

I'l constantly use Ad-Aware (as usual ) and Clear my cookies.

Thank You Mate

Guyute

Trogan- What I do is follow the steps below, then that will pop up a window every time a website tries to insert a cookie. At first this may be annoying, but there is a check box that says something to the effect of "check here to remember your response to this website so that I never have to annoy you again with this dialog box". That way you can check the box, then hit "allow" or "block" once and then you are safe, I think. :Canflag:

Let me know if this isn't working or if someone thinks I am not really protecting myself!!

-Steve

Trogan

Thanks Guyute. I havn't tried it because I don't know if it safe. If someone from Short-Media say's its safe than i'l try it but thanks for the advice.

croc_

If you are taking a walk out in the woods, it is recommended that you leave a trail of crumbs from your tracking cookie so that you may find your way home.

Straight_Man

Guyute:

That works only for local cookies to the domain. Lots of sites with ads get them sent from third parties. I'll tell you how I do it, though that will break some websites that will not show content without feeding ads.... The domains that feed lots of ads, like atdmt.net and atdmt.com and doubleclick.net and doubleclick.com and anything that begins with or includes ads in it other than goolgeads get put in the restricted sites zone, with direct entries by domain name. The cookie settings for restricted sites zone are stricter.

What you are doing lets you choose, I block the more common things and use restricted sites zone for that because the cookies settings in that zone block all but session cookies if set up right. To choose right, you have to know, and ad folks change domains every once in a while or use exact IP addresses if they do not want to change domains they use. So, if I get cookies from a site I will not be visiting again and get ad cookies while going there and look at my cookies after havign been redirected there and seeing new things, that info as domain goes into restricted sites zone.

If you are very knowledgeable you can eliminate many of the cookies by not accepting them, but if you get (EXAMPLE) a cookie that is jdii1215@atdmt.com and want to block it, you can put *.atdmt.com or atdmt.com (depends on windows version and service pack of IE if it will take the *. part) and then the stuff from atdmt.com as far as cookies and some images and popups will get blocked by use of ZONE properties.

I also let IE keep passwords for me, and also clean cookies two-three times a wekk to nothing in IE. Most of my surfing is done in Mozilla as Mozilla encrypts user password info better including login info, adn in Mozilla many cookies get blocked by default also. Mozilla fills in the login info at login time for me, lets me tell a site to login by clicking the right key, some sites autologin by having mozilla remember the login and some do not depending on how they are coded.

If you get a lot of cookies from one place, and look at your cookies for domain info and see domains other than the web addresses you want to go to, you can block by domain in RESTRICTED ZONE explicit entries and then all cookies that are not session only cookies will be blocked for the domains you enter, and in fact many session cookies with certain kinds of content in them will be blocked by domain entry there also. IE's zone settings also let you remove a domain from the restricted zone.

The thing to remember is there is give and take with all such choices, and no one of them will work best alone. A lot of domains that AdAware or SpyBot show as domains that feed Data Miners also end up with domain info shown in the details of what those programs find end up listed in restricted sites zone in IE.

I let IE block some things with zone entries, to say this in one sentence. If there are sites that I KNOW do not play dirty tricks I do not want to accept, I sometimes put some, like http://*.microsoft.com , into trusted sites zone, but am very careful about what sites end up there by me putting them there-- there is a way to do this. If you folks ask how to do what you want to try, can explain some about how to do this for the version of IE I have. But unless you know the bad domains to know what cookies NOT to accept, you can break SOME sites' access coding easily by telling IE to take no cookies from that domain. Then you get to undo your choice.

Guyute

Thanks for the tips- I kind of new those features existed, but I never delved inot it too much, because I literally only go to about 5 web sites...this one, two guitar tab ones, Gamespot, and a coupla BF1942 clan sites. It's my wife who seems to always have those "atdmt.com and doubleclick.net" cookies (we have winXP set up with two admin users so that I can have my background, etc. and she can have hers...). I think I'll use your advice and set us both up to stop accepting cookies from these monkeys, because she admits she can't be bothered doing what I do with the permission thing...

Thanks again.

savannahcracker

If you have a credit card and $9.95 cents in an account you can look for a anonymous IP address. This should cure your problem, because what will take places is you ip is tunneled to another computer which in return covers your ip and sends out different ones ass you visit different sites and what not. This may help eliminate the problem... I am not sure, but I have not noticed any one the other machine... So, this could be useful in more than one way. Being able to be anonymous has 2 sides though. You may not be trusted in certian areas, but most of the time you will not have to worry about anyone finding you or your machine. This is good if your a blackhat, but you still can be found.