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>> Nobody has ever been hurt by a tracking cookie in the history of the internet. > How do you know? Same way I know that that defining the ASCII code for T a

>> Nobody has ever been hurt by a tracking cookie in the history of the internet. > How do you know? Same way I know that that defining the ASCII code for T as 084 has never hurt anyone. It's an interpretation of information, independent of the human condition. Change my mind.

matheusmoreira 7y ago
Cookies are used to track users. Tracking users generates a huge amount of personal information. This data is stored in databases which run on computers. The security of servers can be compromised, leading to database leaks and the publication of people's information.
- Supermancho 7y ago
  The setting of the cookie (the HTTP protocol) is not responsible for hurting anyone. People are, through negligence. I would have accepted a case wherein a user in the arctic, with limited bandwidth, was hurt due to the cookie data interfering with the communication. Hand waving about a series of human failings being connected to a technology is not compelling. I guess it's the same argument as the "gun" isn't responsible for gun violence, excepting cookies aren't even designed to reveal information. Guns are definitely designed (in part) be used against people.
  - matheusmoreira 7y ago
    > The setting of the cookie (the HTTP protocol) is not responsible for hurting anyone. People are, through negligence. It's not just any cookie though. You specifically mentioned tracking cookies. > Nobody has ever been hurt by a tracking cookie in the history of the internet. These cookies exist for no purpose other than information collection. They aren't even required for the website to function. This isn't negligence, it's imprudence: being reckless with people's personal information, amassing large amounts of it in the name of profit without stopping to think about the consequences. This isn't unique to cookies either. It applies to every browser fingerprinting method.

matheusmoreira 7y ago

Cookies are used to track users. Tracking users generates a huge amount of personal information. This data is stored in databases which run on computers. The security of servers can be compromised, leading to database leaks and the publication of people's information.

Supermancho 7y ago
The setting of the cookie (the HTTP protocol) is not responsible for hurting anyone. People are, through negligence. I would have accepted a case wherein a user in the arctic, with limited bandwidth, was hurt due to the cookie data interfering with the communication. Hand waving about a series of human failings being connected to a technology is not compelling. I guess it's the same argument as the "gun" isn't responsible for gun violence, excepting cookies aren't even designed to reveal information. Guns are definitely designed (in part) be used against people.
- matheusmoreira 7y ago
  > The setting of the cookie (the HTTP protocol) is not responsible for hurting anyone. People are, through negligence. It's not just any cookie though. You specifically mentioned tracking cookies. > Nobody has ever been hurt by a tracking cookie in the history of the internet. These cookies exist for no purpose other than information collection. They aren't even required for the website to function. This isn't negligence, it's imprudence: being reckless with people's personal information, amassing large amounts of it in the name of profit without stopping to think about the consequences. This isn't unique to cookies either. It applies to every browser fingerprinting method.