Hello internet, goodbye privacy. Fighting tracking cookies seems hopeless.

[Guest Sarah]

I don't like being spied on and having my behavior recorded, even if

my name is not attached, which, to tell you the truth, I'm pretty

dubious about.

 

I've been watching what cookies are getting set by having firefox ask

each time a cookie gets put on. People have suggested things like host

files and other approaches.

 

But there is just no way to get by on the internet without letting

very large companies monitor you all they want.

 

Ebay will not work if you do not accept cookies. You can click the 10

or 11 times to approve cookies each time you click a link in Ebay. But

if you refuse one, Ebay stops working. You either let them install

whatever cookies they want, or don't use Ebay.

 

Google bought Doubleclick, the worst of the companies, with a history

of selling tracking information linked to real identities with social

security numbers, and so on. What is the chance Ebay will stop

Doubleclick from insiduously inserting itself on our machines whether

we like it or not? Is the alternative to refuse to use Google?

 

On the one hand we'll have people looking for ways to stop cookies and

invasion of privace with meager tools and political movements, and on

the other hand have Google and other companies throwing their multi-

million dollar IT development departments at harvesting us like wheat,

and multi-billions at buying the rights to the airwaves, or whatever

is the equivalent in the digital age.

 

Money corrupts. Money talks.

[Guest Sarah]

Re: Hello internet, goodbye privacy. Fighting tracking cookies seems hopeless.

 

Actually, since the government subpoenaed private record of users'

searches on Google, I guess Google does not store data about us

anonymously, it is linked to our identities. I wonder if they sell it

like that.

[Guest Robin T Cox]

Re: Hello internet, goodbye privacy. Fighting tracking cookiesseems hopeless.

 

Re: Hello internet, goodbye privacy. Fighting tracking cookiesseems hopeless.

 

On Sun, 12 Aug 2007 21:30:20 -0700, Sarah wrote:

> I've been watching what cookies are getting set by having firefox ask

> each time a cookie gets put on.

 

Here's a useful article by SpywareInfo that explains how cookies work, and

what to do about them.

 

http://www.spywareinfo.com/articles/cookies/

[Guest The Natural Philosopher]

Re: Hello internet, goodbye privacy. Fighting tracking cookies seemshopeless.

 

Re: Hello internet, goodbye privacy. Fighting tracking cookies seemshopeless.

 

Sarah wrote:

> I don't like being spied on and having my behavior recorded, even if

> my name is not attached, which, to tell you the truth, I'm pretty

> dubious about.

>

> I've been watching what cookies are getting set by having firefox ask

> each time a cookie gets put on. People have suggested things like host

> files and other approaches.

>

> But there is just no way to get by on the internet without letting

> very large companies monitor you all they want.

>

 

Well thats because its not possible to maintain states through multiple

instances of a browser-to-site transaction - like shopping online -

without using a cookie. For better or worse the moment a page load is

finished, so is your physical session with the server.

 

Even if you anted to enntirely NOT pry into a users computer, you cannot

carry any information about who he is forward through multiple access -

like filing a shopping basket - without using cookies.

 

> Ebay will not work if you do not accept cookies. You can click the 10

> or 11 times to approve cookies each time you click a link in Ebay. But

> if you refuse one, Ebay stops working. You either let them install

> whatever cookies they want, or don't use Ebay.

>

> Google bought Doubleclick, the worst of the companies, with a history

> of selling tracking information linked to real identities with social

> security numbers, and so on. What is the chance Ebay will stop

> Doubleclick from insiduously inserting itself on our machines whether

> we like it or not? Is the alternative to refuse to use Google?

>

> On the one hand we'll have people looking for ways to stop cookies and

> invasion of privace with meager tools and political movements, and on

> the other hand have Google and other companies throwing their multi-

> million dollar IT development departments at harvesting us like wheat,

> and multi-billions at buying the rights to the airwaves, or whatever

> is the equivalent in the digital age.

>

> Money corrupts. Money talks.

>

Er actually no. There is no way to MAKE ebay work with the HTTP protocol

WITHOUT using cookies.

[Guest Opinicus]

Re: Hello internet, goodbye privacy. Fighting tracking cookies seems hopeless.

 

"Sarah" <sarah_sonderson@hotmail.com> wrote

> Google bought Doubleclick, the worst of the companies, with a history

> of selling tracking information linked to real identities with social

> security numbers, and so on. What is the chance Ebay will stop

> Doubleclick from insiduously inserting itself on our machines whether

> we like it or not? Is the alternative to refuse to use Google?

 

I have *.doubleclick.com, *.double-click.com, and *.doubleclick.net all in

my IE "Restricted Sites" zone (I just checked) and I don't have any trouble

whatsoever using either Google or eBay.

 

--

Bob

http://www.kanyak.com

[Guest Gretch]

Re: Hello internet, goodbye privacy. Fighting tracking cookies seems hopeless.

 

In news:1187004725.12900.0@iris.uk.clara.net,

The Natural Philosopher <a@b.c> wrote:

> For better or worse the moment a page load is finished, so is your

> physical session with the server.

 

You might wish to review the Firefox/Mozilla definition of "session" wrt

cookies ... one opens a browser process to start a "session", and a

"session" is ended when the browser pid, including all children, is

terminated.

[Guest The Natural Philosopher]

Re: Hello internet, goodbye privacy. Fighting tracking cookies seemshopeless.

 

Re: Hello internet, goodbye privacy. Fighting tracking cookies seemshopeless.

 

Gretch wrote:

> In news:1187004725.12900.0@iris.uk.clara.net,

> The Natural Philosopher <a@b.c> wrote:

>

>> For better or worse the moment a page load is finished, so is your

>> physical session with the server.

>

> You might wish to review the Firefox/Mozilla definition of "session" wrt

> cookies ... one opens a browser process to start a "session", and a

> "session" is ended when the browser pid, including all children, is

> terminated.

>

yeah, as I pointed out in the bit you snipped, the cookie is stored on

the browser to extend the concept of a session beyond that offered by

the TCP/IP connection itself.

 

Whilst cookies can be abused, they are an integral and necessary part of

any web based transaction that consists in more than a single entry form.

 

Just because a site uses cookies, doesn't mean it is spying on your

computer: In fact, mostly it just wants to know who you are so your

details don't get mixed up with anyone elses.