Cookie Crumbles

Cookie Crumbles: a reader asks…

Hi Coach, I’ve run across several websites that have a warning on them saying that they use “cookies” and I have to accept them to use their website. Is there anything I need to worry about these things on my computer, like can they infect me or cause other trouble?

Cookies are little files that websites store on your computer, primarily intended to make your web browsing experience faster and easier. They may include references to other files (like image files) also downloaded so the website loads faster the next time you go there. There are actually a number of different types of cookies (first-party, third-party, session, super, etc.), but for the most part you really don’t need to worry about it. Your web browser will deal with the cookies automatically, and your computer security program (you have one don’t you?) will also likely handle cookie cleanup as needed.

Cookies by themselves cannot infect your computer with anything nefarious, at most they will record information about your website visits and could potentially alert advertisers when you click on ads or any other activity that might flag you as someone likely to spend money. The reason you’re seeing these types of warnings more often on websites is because the owners of those websites want to stop folks like you from blocking their ads. You see these website owners depend on ad revenue to remain in business, since pretty much nobody is willing to pay for ad content. Disclaimer: my website also serves up ads and that is the sole source of revenue to support the articles you read here.

Websites don’t just appear on the internet for free, there has to be some sort of money coming in to keep us in business, so we’re stuck having to show ads on our websites. Every time someone looks at an ad (by looking at a webpage with an ad on it), the website owner gets a (very) small fraction of money. If a visitor actually clicks on an ad, the website owner gets quite a bit more. But the dollar amounts are generally pretty small (like an eighth of a penny), so it takes an awful lot of website looks to generate any worthwhile money. That’s why us website owners are always looking to get more people visiting their websites.

Ad blocker software (usually an add-in or extension to a web browser) has become much more popular as folks don’t want to look at the ads. Since they also don’t want to pay for looking at the website, it becomes a self-defeating exercise – if the website owner doesn’t get revenue from ads, they can’t stay in business and their website disappears. From the consumer’s standpoint, there’s always plenty of other websites to visit, so there’s no downside to ad blockers, at least immediately. But at some point there will come a time when you, the consumer, wants to look at something and won’t be able to find it, simply because you are unwilling to pay for the privilege of seeing it. So these notifications of cookie use on websites is going to increase as website owners struggle to stay solvent in this increasingly difficult business.

The truth is that I will probably have to put such a warning on my website at some point as well, just so that I can continue to answer your questions without you paying me any money directly. If you have a better solution, please leave a comment, I’d love to find a better way to keep giving Practical Help to those who need it!