What Are Internet Cookies?

Cookies. They’re a relatively new concept and another hurdle to get over when we want to browse the web. But even in this digital world that we live in, a shocking 28% of adults in the USA alone do not know, or have any understanding of, what an internet cookie is, claims CookieYes. 

This is backed up by All About the Cookies, who state that 40% of users accept cookies without actually knowing what they are and what they’re used for. With this in mind, we’re going to be taking you through everything you need to know about internet cookies, including what they are, the different types that are used and how you can enable and remove them accordingly.

What are internet cookies?

Cookies, as they’re more commonly referred to in the online world, are essentially text files that hold small pieces of data that are used to identify your computer whenever the network is used. The data it holds could be something like an email or a username and a password. More specific cookies can be used to identify users specifically and to improve their internet browsing experience. 

The data stored will be labelled with an ID that is unique to both yourself and the device you’re using, whether it be a computer, a laptop, a tablet or even your mobile phone. In addition, an internet cookie is also designed to remember certain information about you, such as: website visits, activity, preferences and even your login information.

What are the different types of internet cookies?

There are actually several different types of internet cookies out there today, all of which have a variety of goals in mind. From harvesting your data to create adverts tailored to you right through to simply wanting to improve your overall internet browsing experience, here are the different types of internet cookies you will likely come into contact with in this day and age, if you’re an avid user of the net, like most people.

Magic cookies/HTTP cookies

This is an old computing term that refers to data packets that are sent and received without changes to the data. It’s something that was used by people to login to computer database systems. “Magic cookies” are a predecessor to HTTP cookies, which are the new-and-improved magic cookies. HTTP cookies are what is commonly offered to internet users today.

First party cookies

These are created by the website you’re visiting. Generally, they’re considered to be safer to enable or allow, provided you’re using a legitimate and reputable website. In addition, the website you’re browsing on needs to have not been compromised by a recent data breach or a cyber attack of any kind.

Third-party cookies

Third-party cookies are what people are most wary of. This is because they’re generated by websites that are different from the pages that you’re actually browsing on. Normally, this is because the cookies are linked to certain ads that are present on the same page. 

These cookies allow advertisers and analytics companies to track your browsing history across the internet on any websites containing their adverts. But in most countries these days, these cookies are now optional, giving internet users some peace of mind moving forward.

Zombie cookies

A form of third-party cookie, zombie cookies are persistent and permanently installed on your internet device. They can reappear if you delete them from your computer, almost as if they’re coming back from the dead, hence the term “zombie cookie”. They’re incredibly difficult to get rid of, but they can be used by websites to ban users as and when necessary.

Essential cookies

These will appear almost as soon as you enter a website’s homepage. It will ask you what your cookie preferences are, so you can choose to accept essential cookies only if you’re wary of other cookie types. Essential cookies are first-party cookies, and so they can be trusted more so than allowing all cookies. 

Enabling & removing cookies

When it comes to surfing the internet in this day and age, enabling and disabling cookies are all part of the overall experience. But it’s crucial to be aware that you can limit which cookies end up on your internet browsing device, whether it be a laptop, a desktop, a tablet or a mobile phone. Enabling cookies, or allowing cookies as it’s also known, will help to streamline your overall internet surfing experience. If you want to allow cookies onto your device, then all you have to do is:

• Find the cookie selection menu, which is normally under the ‘privacy’ setting
• Tick the boxes that allow the cookies, sometimes they will ask you if you want to allow ‘local’ cookies

However, while you might want to enable cookies, there is a way to disable them, and you can do that by simply unticking those boxes and moving forward with your website-surfing experience. The only issue with disabling cookies is that you might have to keep re-entering your details in order to access the website you’re wanting to look at.

Kumo is an experienced digital marketing agency with over two years of knowledge and expertise behind us. At the helm of our operations, we have a team of specialists in the field, including experts in SEO, PPC, website design and content creation. If you would like further information about the digital marketing services we have on offer, then get in touch with a member of our friendly, professional team today – we’re always pleased to hear from you.