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I find that unlike disabling cookies altogether, the web is a very usable with cookies set to expire when you close your browser. So all cookie based tracking i

I find that unlike disabling cookies altogether, the web is a very usable with cookies set to expire when you close your browser. So all cookie based tracking is reset whenever I restart. In firefox you can alter rules on a per site basis. I only enable permanent cookies on my banking site which asks annoying "secret questions". This demo only showed me 3 cookies from IMDB (which I browsed in this session I guess). Note: the "restore my last session" link in firefox will work against this setting and reload your cookies from the last session.

vasco 15y ago
The only place that should indeed be more safe is the one you choose not to clear the data from. Shouldn't it be the other way around?
- darkstar999 15y ago
  My bank asks dumb questions that the average person could possibly figure out. In which city does my eldest sibling live? Mother's maiden name? These are useless.
  - maxerickson 15y ago
    I've never had a problem getting them to accept answers that have nothing to do with the question and look more like passwords.
    - dhimes 15y ago
      Exactly my solution. And if I'm opening an account in person I usually feel obliged to lecture the poor banker on why these questions are a liability--remember Sarah Palin-- etc.
- redstripe 15y ago
  I do this for privacy, not for security. It gives me more privacy than the default setting. Perhaps that's an irony that the bank should consider, or anyone that has weird password requirements that end up working against their goal.
rabidsnail 15y ago
Anyone who cares will be using flash cookies, local storage (or the user storage behavior thingy in IE < 8), etags, etc. Web browsers are full of tiny crevices for tracking tokens to hide.
- stingraycharles 15y ago
  Premium advertisers generally avoid these kind of practices; basically they don't do business with agencies that use flash cookies and/or browser hashing. Typically, an ad network wants to conform to the guidelines set by the IAB [1], which explicitly recommends against flash cookies, calling them illegal [2]. So, all in all, if something can hurt a brand's reputation among consumers, advertisers generally don't spend their money there. Shady practices like these are among them. [1] http://www.iab.net/ http://www.iab.net/ [2] http://www.iabeurope.eu/news/iab-europe-condemns-%E2%80%98re-spawning%E2%80%99-as-an-illegal-marketing-practice.aspx http://www.iabeurope.eu/news/iab-europe-condemns-%E2%80%98re...
  - rabidsnail 15y ago
    That only applies to organizations that have a presence in the EU (which probably includes most of the big ad networks, since they have international sales teams). Smaller players domestic to the US don't have the same constraints. Also, it's not just ad networks that do browser tracking.
- rsingel 15y ago
  Intentionally bypassing user settings to track users might seem like a practical, albeit ethically wrong, business decision, right up to the point that you get caught. Ask Hulu and KISSmetrics, for two. (search "zombie cookies" and those companies names.)
Tichy 15y ago
I used to have that, but nowadays I never close my browser anymore. I don't switch off my notebook, it only goes to sleep. I only restart the browser when it crashes (not that often these days) or some OS update forces a reboot.
there 15y ago
I also use that configuration in Firefox, with cookies expiring at browser close by default. I use the Cookie Monster add-on to easily whitelist sites like HN, my banks, etc. where I want long-lasting cookies: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/cookie-monster/ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/cookie-monste... I browse with Flash disabled (tip: there are ways of bypassing the Flash Block add-on, so disable the flash plugin completely when you don't need it, it's easy to re-enable and reload a page on occasion) and have the Better Privacy add-on cleaning up Flash cookies on a timer and at browser close: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/betterprivacy/ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/betterprivacy... Also, the Ghostery plugin is a nice lightweight alternative to AdBlock to just block tracking scripts without wiping out ads everywhere. It kind of side-steps the tracking issues this Firefox Collusion plugin is highlighting. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/ghostery/ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/ghostery/

vasco 15y ago

The only place that should indeed be more safe is the one you choose not to clear the data from. Shouldn't it be the other way around?

darkstar999 15y ago
My bank asks dumb questions that the average person could possibly figure out. In which city does my eldest sibling live? Mother's maiden name? These are useless.
- maxerickson 15y ago
  I've never had a problem getting them to accept answers that have nothing to do with the question and look more like passwords.
  - dhimes 15y ago
    Exactly my solution. And if I'm opening an account in person I usually feel obliged to lecture the poor banker on why these questions are a liability--remember Sarah Palin-- etc.
redstripe 15y ago
I do this for privacy, not for security. It gives me more privacy than the default setting. Perhaps that's an irony that the bank should consider, or anyone that has weird password requirements that end up working against their goal.

rabidsnail 15y ago

Anyone who cares will be using flash cookies, local storage (or the user storage behavior thingy in IE < 8), etags, etc. Web browsers are full of tiny crevices for tracking tokens to hide.

stingraycharles 15y ago
Premium advertisers generally avoid these kind of practices; basically they don't do business with agencies that use flash cookies and/or browser hashing. Typically, an ad network wants to conform to the guidelines set by the IAB [1], which explicitly recommends against flash cookies, calling them illegal [2]. So, all in all, if something can hurt a brand's reputation among consumers, advertisers generally don't spend their money there. Shady practices like these are among them. [1] http://www.iab.net/ http://www.iab.net/ [2] http://www.iabeurope.eu/news/iab-europe-condemns-%E2%80%98re-spawning%E2%80%99-as-an-illegal-marketing-practice.aspx http://www.iabeurope.eu/news/iab-europe-condemns-%E2%80%98re...
- rabidsnail 15y ago
  That only applies to organizations that have a presence in the EU (which probably includes most of the big ad networks, since they have international sales teams). Smaller players domestic to the US don't have the same constraints. Also, it's not just ad networks that do browser tracking.
rsingel 15y ago
Intentionally bypassing user settings to track users might seem like a practical, albeit ethically wrong, business decision, right up to the point that you get caught. Ask Hulu and KISSmetrics, for two. (search "zombie cookies" and those companies names.)

Tichy 15y ago

I used to have that, but nowadays I never close my browser anymore. I don't switch off my notebook, it only goes to sleep. I only restart the browser when it crashes (not that often these days) or some OS update forces a reboot.

there 15y ago

I also use that configuration in Firefox, with cookies expiring at browser close by default. I use the Cookie Monster add-on to easily whitelist sites like HN, my banks, etc. where I want long-lasting cookies: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/cookie-monster/ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/cookie-monste... I browse with Flash disabled (tip: there are ways of bypassing the Flash Block add-on, so disable the flash plugin completely when you don't need it, it's easy to re-enable and reload a page on occasion) and have the Better Privacy add-on cleaning up Flash cookies on a timer and at browser close: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/betterprivacy/ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/betterprivacy... Also, the Ghostery plugin is a nice lightweight alternative to AdBlock to just block tracking scripts without wiping out ads everywhere. It kind of side-steps the tracking issues this Firefox Collusion plugin is highlighting. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/ghostery/ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/ghostery/