They may sound delicious, but the reality is that without a little vigilance web cookies can walk all over your browsing privacy. Computers can seem complex enough and most of the time default settings work a treat. But cookies are a different story…
Ever wondered why that flight you’ve been eyeing up just happened to jump in price at the last minute? Maybe you Googled ‘Hawaiian holiday packages’ last week and are now getting swamped with online advertisements from travel agencies? Or perhaps you return to Amazon, only to find that the items you’d chosen not to buy are still in your shopping cart. All are classic examples of web cookie activity.
So why should you be concerned? First, let’s take a look at what web cookies actually are.
What are web cookies?
In some cases, cookies can be incredibly useful. For example, some websites will remember your login details, automatically default to your browsing preferences or memorise your search history. So, if you’re using a search engine to look for flights, chances are when you next visit the website your dates and destination will already be punched in. It seems handy, but unfortunately, cookies could be working against you.
The dark side of cookies
Online marketing is becoming increasingly sophisticated and cookies are playing a big role in customer conversion. All too often they’re aggressively and covertly used to monitor your surfing habits and use them to target you with astonishing precision.
They can also use data against you. This means that if a website remembers your flight search history they could bump up prices to match your interest. While there’s a lot of controversy over whether or not airlines actually engage in this sort of flight price fixing, there’s definitely no harm in clearing your cookies before or after you search!
Managing your web cookies
So how can you manage your web cookies and protect your online privacy? The good news is it isn’t as hard as you might think, and you don’t need to be a tech guru to make a few easy tweaks.
We’ve put together a quick guide but if you want more detailed instructions just head over to YouTube where you’ll find narrated, step by step instructions. Or, simply ask a tech savvy friend or grandchild for help. Maybe you could even offer them some genuine home baked cookies in return!
Control Cookies in Google Chrome
- Click on the drop-down menu in the upper right corner
- Select Settings
- Scroll down and click the arrow to show Advanced Settings
- Under Privacy and Security, select Content Settings
- In the Cookies section, select ‘keep local data only until you quit your browser’
- Tick the box marked ‘block third-party cookies and site data’
Control Cookies in Mozilla Firefox
- Click on the drop-down menu in the upper right corner
- Select Options
- Choose Privacy in the pane at the left
- Under History, use the drop-down menu to select ‘use custom settings for history’
- Activate the ‘never’ option next to ‘accept third-party cookies’
Control Cookies in Internet Explorer
- Click the drop-down menu in the upper right corner
- Choose Internet Options
- In the Privacy tab, select Advanced
- Check the box marked ‘override automatic cookie handling’
- Choose ‘block’ next to the ‘third party cookies’ option
- Tick the box for ‘always allow session cookies’
With a little insider knowledge, you can outsmart cookies and keep your browsing business under wraps.