Cookies question please

[Dudley Henriques]

I think I have it straight that cookies aren't always bad to have on the
syystem, and you need them actually to help open web sites you frequent
more quickly, but after running an on line scan for spyware, the results
picked up a lot of what it calls tracking cookies on my system that it
suggests could be spyware.
Question is this; to keep my system running cleanly, I delete the TIF
quite often from IE/tools/options/delete TIF with offline content
checked.
I manually clean up my temp folder after installing software as well.

I normally pass on deleting cookies which is in the same box as the TIF
option.
Should I perhaps be deleting the cookies as well from time to time with
the cookie option in that box just to clean out any spyware cookies that
might be in the TIF folder and start over again letting my favorite
sites download their cookies ?
What's confusing to me is that if keeping the cookies cllean helps the
spyware issue, why would it not be a good idea to clean up cookies by
deleting them every now and then and start over?
Accepted procedure by you guys would be welcome.
Thanks
Dudley

 

[Answer]

Bascially whether you delete the cookies or not you will
always get tracking cookies downloaded. The best you can
do right now is just use an anti-spyware tool. Cookies do
not necessarily make a page load faster they have various
uses. For exmaple if you sign into hotmail and check
the "Remember Me" option, than a cookie is downloaded to
your computer. Removing the cookie only means you than
have to login to hotmail again.

There is an option in Tools | Internet Options under the
Advanced tab and in the security section -- "Empty
Temporary Internet Cache When Browser is Closed" checking
this will automatically delete your Temporary Internet
Files.

Basically what I do is change my permission level on a few
registry keys and folders so that I only have READ access.
This prevents most spyware from installing and starting up.

 

[Wesley Vogel]

Yes cleaning out cookies is a good idea. If there are some you would like
to keep, i.e. your ISP.....

1.
In Internet Explorer, on the Tools menu, click Internet Options.

2.
On the General tab, click Settings, and then click View files.

3.
Select the cookie you want to delete, and then, on the File menu, click
Delete.



Description of Cookies
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;260971

Understanding cookies
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/sec_cook.mspx

Defining Malware: FAQ
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/topics/virus/malware.mspx

To customize your privacy settings for an individual Web site
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/.../xp/all/proddocs/en-us/set_priv_per_site.mspx

 

[Dudley Henriques]

Thank you to everybody who answered. Between you folks and reading up on
it through google, I think I have a handle on it now.
D