How to Locate My Cookies

Locate and delete unwanted cookies from your computer to maintain your privacy.

Cookies stored in your Internet browser's temporary Internet folder are considered your virtual thumbprint when accessing sites. They tell the site who you are and collect information about what you accessed while browsing the site, which is then sent back to the site's server. While trusted sites add cookies to your computer for marketing purposes or shopping carts on the site, other sites may use the cookies to collect your private information and puts you at risk of receiving malicious software known as malware. Cookies automatically expire after a period of time, and can be manually deleted from your computer through your browser.

Instructions

Internet Explorer

1. Double-click "Internet Explorer" and click "Tools" on the browser's menu. Click "Internet Options" on the sub-menu to open the browser's preferences.

2. Click "Settings" in the Browsing History section of the Internet Options window, and click "View Files." Your computer's current list of cookies are organized by site name in the View Files window.

3. Click "OK" to exit out of the screen and return to the previous window. Click "Delete" and click the checkbox next to "Cookies" to select cookies for deletion. Click "OK" to erase all of your browser's cookies.

Safari

1. Click "Safari" on the desktop to launch the application, and click "Safari" on the menu bar in the upper-left corner of the screen.

2. Click "Preferences" in the sub-menu, and click "Security." Click "Show Cookies" to view all of the currently added cookies on your computer.

3. Click the name of the cookie you wish to remove, and click "Remove" to manually delete it. Alternately, click "Remove All" to erase all of your computer's cookies.

4. Click "Done" to save and exit the window.

FireFox

1. Launch Firefox on your computer, and click "Tools" at the top of the browser's window. Click "Options" to open the browser's settings.

2. Click "Privacy" and click "Show Cookies" to open your browser's cookies folder.

3. Highlight the cookie and press "Backspace" or "Delete" on your keyboard to remove cookies. Click "Done" to exit the Cookies window and return to the Privacy window.

References

• Indiana University Information Technology Services: Knowledge Base - In Internet Explorer, How Do I View and Control Cookies?
• Apple: Safari 3.0 Help - Managing Cookies
• Indiana University Information Technology Services: Using Firefox, How Do I View and Control Cookies?

Resources

• Apple: Safari
• Microsoft: Internet Explorer
• Mozilla: Firefox