Define Tracking Cookies
On the Internet, "cookie" is a term meaning a little piece of information that is put into a text file and saved onto your computer. Tracking cookies track your movements on the Internet to a small degree.
Other People Are Reading
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Advertising Information
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Tracking cookies allow advertisers to see which other sites you visit, but they can only do so from sites they are advertising on.
Ads at Multiple Sites
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If an ad by one company appeared at Amazon.com and at eBay.com and you visited both sites and saw the same company's ad on both sites, the tracking cookie would let the advertiser know this.
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Information Isn't Personal Info
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The information a tracking cookie gives advertisers is typically some random number assigned to your computer and the fact that you visited two or more sites that the advertiser advertises on. That's it.
Info is Useful to Advertisers
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Advertisers track this information through cookies simply to be able to see which other sites their customers visit. If 40 percent of viewers on one site visit another site, for example, they'll be more likely to continue to advertise on that second site.
Tracking Cookies Can Be Stopped
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If you aren't comfortable letting advertisers place cookies on your computer, you can configure your Web browser to not accept cookies. Some functionality may be lost on certain websites.
Getting Rid of Existing Cookies
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You can find software online that will allow you to clean existing cookies out of your computer.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit cookie image by Vera Kailova from Fotolia.com
