What is a cookie?

A cookie is a harmless text file stored in your browser when you visit almost any website. Its purpose is to allow the site to remember your visit the next time you browse it. Although many people don’t know it, cookies have been used for over 20 years, ever since the first browsers appeared for the World Wide Web.

What is NOT a cookie?

It’s not a virus, trojan, worm, spam, spyware, or a pop-up window.

What kind of information does a cookie store?

Cookies typically don’t store sensitive personal data like credit card details, bank info, photos, ID numbers, or personal information. The data they store is usually technical, related to preferences, content personalization, etc.

The web server doesn’t associate you as a person, but rather associates your browser. In fact, if you usually browse with Internet Explorer and then switch to Firefox or Chrome, you’ll see that the site doesn’t recognize you as the same user, because it’s tied to the browser—not the person.

What types of cookies exist?

  • Technical cookies: The most basic ones, used to identify whether a visitor is a human or an automated app, whether the user is logged in or anonymous—basic functions needed for dynamic websites.
  • Analytics cookies: Gather information about your browsing behavior, the sections you visit most, products viewed, time of access, language, and so on.
  • Advertising cookies: Display ads based on your browsing habits, country of origin, language, etc.

What are first-party and third-party cookies?

First-party cookies are generated by the website you’re visiting, while third-party cookies are generated by external services or providers like Facebook, Twitter, Google, etc.

What happens if I disable cookies?

To help you understand the impact of disabling cookies, here are some examples:

  • You won’t be able to share content from the website on Facebook, Twitter, or other social networks.
  • The website won’t be able to adapt content to your personal preferences, as happens with online stores.
  • You won’t be able to access personal areas of the website like My Account, My Profile, or My Orders.
  • Online stores: you won’t be able to make purchases online—you’d need to call or visit the store in person (if one exists).
  • You won’t be able to customize your geographic preferences like timezone, currency, or language.
  • The website won’t be able to perform web analytics, making it harder to stay competitive.
  • You won’t be able to write on the blog, upload photos, post comments, rate content, or vote. The website also won’t be able to detect if you’re a human or a bot posting spam.
  • Targeted advertising won’t be possible, which could reduce the website’s ad revenue.
  • All social networks use cookies, so disabling them means you won’t be able to use any social media platforms.

Can cookies be deleted?

Yes. You can not only delete them, but also block them—either globally or for a specific domain.

To delete cookies from a website, go to your browser settings, find the ones associated with that domain, and delete them.

Here’s how to access specific cookies in Chrome (note: steps may vary depending on browser version):

  1. Go to Settings or Preferences from the File menu or by clicking the customization icon in the top right corner.
  2. Look for the different sections and click on Show advanced settings.
  3. Go to Privacy, then Content settings.
  4. Select All cookies and site data.
  5. A list of all cookies will appear, sorted by domain. To find cookies from a specific site more easily, enter the domain (partially or fully) in the Search cookies field.
  6. Once you apply the filter, you’ll see one or more lines showing cookies from that site. Just select the cooki