What are cookies on my computer?

If you use a computer at all, you’ve probably heard the term “cookie” mentioned a few times but you may not be quite sure what it means.  It’s not a very descriptive term.  What are they for?  Are they good or bad?

Cookies are small text files that are created and stored on your computer’s hard drive when you visit a website.  They may store login information so you don’t have to keep logging in every time you visit a site. They may store information related to ads being displayed so that the ads can be personally “tailored” to your likes.  They are also used to remember items added to online shopping carts or products viewed in an online store. There is nothing inherently bad about cookies but they can be at times used for malicious purposes.  This is why some anti-virus programs will flag certain coolies as potential threats.

Cookies can also sometimes cause webpages to load incorrectly if they become outdated.  Yes, even web cookies can become stale.  This is why it’s a good idea to occasionally clear cookies from your browser.  This is handled in the history settings of your browser which lets you pick what information you would like to delete.  Clearing cookies can mean that you have to remember passwords that you haven’t typed  in awhile, so make sure you know those passwords before you start clearing them!  You can go here to learn more about how to clear cookies on your particular browser.