Throughout this semester we have discussed the topics of privacy and information security and how websites like Google Analytics can track data like how many page views a company receives or how many people have clicked through their website. In addition, we learned about Cookies, and how it examines data such as interests, demographics, location, etc. What this allows Cookies to do is essentially figure out your marketing interests based off the personal data they have about you and use pop-up ads, emails and other ways to attract your interest.
As interesting as Cookies may seem, admittedly it’s also kind of weird in the sense that you feel like you’re being followed from sit-to-site. That is essentially how Cookies works. However, what’s unsettling is the the personal information they have on you. It poses the question of whether or not the information they are requesting is ethical or unethical. I like to think that Cookies is ethical, but only just so. I also believe that when allowing a website to access your cookies, that you only do so on a private and secured wifi network. There are many cybercriminals and hackers in this day and age, and you’re more susceptible to an attack if you allow a website to access your Cookies while on a public wifi network. A fews ways to prevent this from happening is by simply not going on websites that have access to your Cookies while you’re on a public wifi network. Another tactic is by using an incognito window. An incognito window, or private browser, allows one to have privacy while browsing. The browser isolates you from the websites main session so that your data is safe and protected.
