HTTP cookie

HTTP cookies are files of text sent by a server to a web browser. They are then sent back unchanged by the browser every time it connects to that server. They are sometimes called web cookies or just cookies. HTTP cookies are used for security, making logs, and keeping some information about users. A cookie might be used to save your options on a website. The word "cookie" comes from the word "magic cookie". This is a well-known idea in Unix computing which inspired both the idea and the name of HTTP cookies.

Cookies have been a problem for Internet privacy. This is because they can be used for tracking browsing behavior. Because of this, laws have been made in countries and continents. Cookies are also a problem because they cannot be accurate. They can also be used for network attacks. There are many other options than cookies, but each option has its own problems.

Cookies have often been mistaken for computer programs. But cookies cannot do much on their own. They are simply a piece of data. They are often called spyware or viruses, but they are not any of these.

Most web browsers allow users to choose whether to accept cookies. If the user does not allow cookies, some websites will become unusable. For example, shopping baskets which use cookies do not work if the user does not allow cookies.