Why Is My Computer Finding So Many Spy Cookies?
I have the security program called Webroot AntiVirus with Firewall and I usually do a full computer sweep on it pretty much everyday. The reason I sweep it almost eeryday is because there are ALWAYS like 6 or 7 spy cookies on it and one time there was a actual virus on it. Why does my computer find like 7 spy cookies everyday? I dont really have any bad programs for my computer with the exception of Limewire and Handbrake. Are these programs the ones giving me all these cookies? Also I usually only go on Facebook and Fluther. So where am I getting al these cookies from?
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5 Answers
A cookie could not contain a virus. They are only chunks of text, not executable code. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HTTP_cookie#Misconceptions.
Every cookie has a domain it belongs to. Does your antivirus program allow you to look at the cookies it’s flagging as bad and see what the domains are?
There are a lot of spys out there, also if you are connected constantly i.e. high speed, DSL etc. you can be infected when your not surfing.
You’re getting them from Facebook possibly. All those banner ads for shooting a target and winning a prize, getting a free iPod, etc, all use these cookies. Limewire may or may not serve ads and if it served the same type they could possibly give you cookies too (many p2p applications have a built in web browser).
They exist because they are set each time you view or click on one of these ads.
But cookies aren’t really as bad as people think they are. They can’t transmit a virus, they can’t compromise your system.
Pfft. I have 25–35 spyware things flagged every day. I never had a problem with it before I got a Trojan virus.
The spy cookies which are tagged by malware detectors are usually marketing cookies.
A cookie is a small(ish) chunk of data that a website keeps on your computer, if you allow it
Web marketing firms use cookies to track what web sites (of theirs) that you visit.
The way it works is like this:
A marketing firm has, say 1000 clients, and it uses the same cookie for each of those clients. Each time you visit one of those sites, the cookie makes a note of it, and sends that information to a server somewhere that tallies all that up and associates the number of hits with your username and IP address (both of which come across in the HTTP request).
In this way, the marketing firm gets a profile of your viewing habits. And, if you ever buy something from any one of its client sites, the firm now has your e-mail (as if they didn’t have it already). Now they can send you targeted spam based on the sites that you visit.
It’s not evil, but it is marketing, which is the next best thing.
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