How To: Check, Limit, and Delete Cookies
You have probably seen those “This Website Uses Cookies” pop-ups on nearly every website you visit lately. This is due to the “EU Cookie Directive,” which requires website owners to notify their users if Cookies are being used.
Here you will learn how to check what Cookies a website uses and also how to take steps to avoid being tracked by Cookies.
What Are Cookies?
AllAboutCookies.org explains it well:
Cookies are stored on your computer generally as a SQLite database file and look like this:
The information listed corresponds to the headers of the table:
Cookies are sometimes necessary or convenient — such as for keeping you logged in on or remembering certain preferences you have set on sites. However, Cookies can follow you around and make you feel like the advertisers are reading your mind.
This is how it happens:
– You visit Website 1 and search for something to buy.
– A Cookie on Website 1 is installed, gives you a unique identifier, and takes note of your actions.
– When you go to Website 2, the Cookie you picked up on Website 1 may send the information it collected about you to an Ad company (such as Google) and provide information on where it was picked up. Google can then dynamically change the ads you see on Website 2 – which may be for products on Website 1. If this occurs, it indicates that Website 1 pays Google for these services.
As with these Cookies from BestBuy.com and Newegg.com , you can see how your information is captured:
How To Check, Limit, and Delete Cookies
You can easily check what Cookies a website uses. Here we will demonstrate how to see and delete them using some of the most popular web browsers:
Chrome
Viewing Cookies in Chrome
– Open Chrome and head to a website. Here we will use rechor.com.
– Click the image of the padlock near the site URL. If there is no padlock, then click on the “Not Secure” info button near the site URL (if you see this message, do not send sensitive information using this website since SSL is not being used). Click on “Cookies (x in use).”
– A dialog box will appear and show you what Cookies are being used on the site. You can click on each one and find out more information about it such as its Domain and when it expires.
– And, for good measure, here is an example of a website that uses a lot of Cookies:
Deleting Cookies in Chrome
– Open Chrome and click the three vertical dots near the upper right-hand corner. In the menu that appears, click “Settings.” Note: you can also type and submit “chrome://settings/” in the address bar.
– Under the “Privacy and security” menu, click on “Clear browsing data.” The “Clear browsing data” menu should appear.
– Select any/all of the data types you want to delete:
– “Browsing History” – Contains any sites you have visited
– “Cookies and other site data” – Contains Cookies
– “Cached images and files” – Images/files that have been stored on your computer to help pages load faster on subsequent visits
– Change the “Time range” drop-down menu to the appropriate time frame. Select “All time” to delete all of the selected information.
– Click “Clear data.” You can also check the “Advanced” tab for more information to remove, such as autofill form data and passwords.
Firefox
Viewing Cookies in Firefox
– Open Firefox and head to a website. Here we will use rechor.com.
– Press F12 on your keyboard OR right-click on the page and select “Inspect Element.” This opens the Firefox Developer Tools.
– At the top of the Developer Tools panel, you should see a tab titled “Storage.” Click on it and you should see items such as “Cache Storage” and “Cookies” appear on the left of the panel.
– Click the “Cookies” icon. This will open its sub-menu and will list the site. Click on the site and the Cookies should appear in the main panel window.
– Here is an example of a website that uses a lot of Cookies:
Deleting Cookies in Firefox
– Open Firefox and click the three horizontal lines near the upper right-hand corner. In the menu that appears, click “Options.” Note: you can also type and submit “about:preferences” in the address bar.
– On the left, look for the tab titled “Privacy and Security” and click on it. This will take you to the “Privacy and Security” settings for Firefox. Note: you can also type and submit “about:preferences#privacy” in the address bar to be taken directly to it.
– Scroll down the page and find the “Cookies and Site Data” section. Click on “Clear Data…” and a pop-up will appear showing the amount of storage Cookies/Site Data and Cached Web Content are taking up. Click “Clear” to erase the data of your selection(s).
Microsoft Edge
Viewing Cookies in Edge
– Open Microsoft Edge and head to a website. Here we will use rechor.com
– Press F12 on your keyboard OR right-click on the page and select “Inspect Element.” This opens the Microsoft Edge Developer Tools.
– At the top of the Developer Tools panel, you should see a tab titled “Storage.” Click on it and you should see items such as “Local Storage” and “Cookies.”
– Double-click the “Cookies” icon. This will open its sub-menu and will list the site. Click on the site and the Cookies should appear in the main panel window.
– Here’s a site that uses more cookies than five sites put together:
Deleting Cookies in Edge
– Open Edge and click the three horizontal dots near the upper right-hand corner. In the menu that appears, click “Settings.”
– On the left, look for the tab titled “Privacy and security” and click on it. This will take you to the “Privacy and Security” settings for Edge.
– On the right, look for the “Clear browsing data” section and click on “Choose what to clear.” The “Clear Browsing Data” section will open.
– Ensure “Cookies and saved website data” is checked and then click “Clear.”
Accessing Your Browser's "Private" Mode
Your web browser has a “private” mode that attempts to limit your ability to be tracked. Cookies, visited sites, and form completion data should be deleted automatically after you close your browser.
Remember that the “private” modes do not obscure any of your internet activity from your Internet Service Provider (ISP).
Chrome
– Open Chrome, click on the three vertical dots in the upper right-hand side of the page, click on “New incognito window”
OR
– Open Chrome, press “CTRL SHIFT N”
OR
– If Chrome is pinned to your taskbar, right-click its icon and select “New incognito window”
Firefox
– Open Firefox, click on the three horizontal lines in the upper right-hand side of the page, click on “New Private Window”
OR
– Open Firefox, press “CTRL SHIFT P”
OR
– If Firefox is pinned to your taskbar, right-click its icon and select “New private window”
Microsoft Edge
– Open Edge, click on the three horizontal dots in the upper right-hand side of the page, click on “New InPrivate window”
OR
– Open Edge, press “CTRL SHIFT P”
OR
– If Edge is pinned to your taskbar, right-click its icon and select “New InPrivate window”
How To Limit Cookie Tracking
You can’t escape Cookies, but you can do your best to limit them.
Browsers are updated constantly, so their ways to limit Cookie tracking will change as well.
If you follow all of these steps for your browser, be advised that your browsing experience may become a bit more frustrating, as you may have to login to websites each time you open a new browser. There is also the chance that some web pages may not load properly.
Following these steps will essentially set your browser in an “Incognito” or “Private” mode until you revert them back. If you prefer to avoid Cookies only sometimes, it’s recommended you just use the private modes available mentioned above.
Configure Your Browser to Limit Cookies
Chrome
In Chrome, open Settings -> Privacy and security (or enter “chrome://settings/content/privacy” in the address bar and submit).
– Under the “Privacy and security” section on the page, click “More.” This will expose extra privacy controls
- Turn on “Send a ‘Do Not Track’ request with your browsing traffic”
- “Do Not Track” requests are sent by the browser to websites to tell them to not track your behavior. It is not mandated they are honored, however, so turning this on likely has little effect.
- Turn off “Preload pages for faster browsing and searching”
- Turn off “Allow sites to save and read cookie data”
- Turn on “Clear cookies and site data when you quit Chrome” and “Block third-party cookies”
Firefox
In Firefox, open Options -> Privacy and Security (or enter “about:preferences#privacy” in the address bar and submit).
– Under the “Enhanced Tracking Protection” section on the page, you can choose a profile that fits your needs.
- If you want to block all Cookies, select the “Custom” profile:
- “Cookies” – use the drop-down menu to select “All cookies”
- “Tracking Content” – use the drop-down menu to select “In all windows”
- Click “Reload All Tabs” to apply your changes
- For “Send websites a ‘Do Not Track’ signal that you don’t want to be tracked,” select “Always.”
- “Do Not Track” requests are sent by the browser to websites to tell them to not track your behavior. It is not mandated they are honored, however, so turning this on likely has little effect.
- Check “Delete cookies and site data when Firefox is closed”
Microsoft Edge
In Edge, open Settings -> Privacy and security
– Scroll down to the “Cookies” section and select “Block all cookies” or “Block only third-party cookies”
– Scroll down to the “Privacy” section and turn on “Send Do Not Track Requests”
- “Do Not Track” requests are sent by the browser to websites to tell them to not track your behavior. It is not mandated they are honored, however, so turning this on likely has little effect.