{"id":122,"date":"2005-06-29T18:12:00","date_gmt":"2005-06-29T18:12:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwilson.me.uk\/blog\/2005\/06\/watch-out-for-cookies-when-using.htm"},"modified":"2007-07-17T09:46:21","modified_gmt":"2007-07-17T08:46:21","slug":"watch-out-for-cookies-when-using","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.markwilson.co.uk\/blog\/2005\/06\/watch-out-for-cookies-when-using.htm","title":{"rendered":"Watch out for cookies when using the Microsoft AntiSpyware beta"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last year I blogged about Microsoft’s acquisition of Giant Software<\/a> and I’ve been using their AntiSpyware Beta<\/a> since it was made available in January<\/a>; but last week I was looking at the inordinate amount of spam my Dad receives and that got me thinking about the overall security on his PC (which has my e-mail addresses in the address book!). After installing Lavasoft Ad-Aware SE Personal<\/a>, I found that the Microsoft AntiSpyware Beta product he had been using was doing a pretty good job, but there were a load of tracking cookies which it had not identified. Today, I ran the same tests on two of my PCs and found the same.<\/p>\n

As the Microsoft product is based on Giant’s well-regarded software I decided to look a bit deeper…<\/p>\n

It turns out that although the Giant version of the product scans for cookies, the Microsoft version does not as they are not regarded as a threat<\/a> (despite Ad-Aware classifying them as critical objects). In their information for Giant AntiSpyware users who have active subscriptions<\/a>, Microsoft says:<\/p>\n

“Giant AntiSpyware detects and removes cookies from your computer. Because many Web sites require the use of cookies to enable a great user experience, Windows AntiSpyware (Beta) does not remove cookies.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So are cookies a threat? The answer is both “Yes” and “No”. Quoting from an HP article on where spyware hides<\/a>:<\/p>\n

“Cookies can help users streamline online transactions, remember browsing preferences and user profiles, and personalize pages. Many users don’t realize that cookies can be used to compile data so companies can construct a profile about the websites they visit and the web banner advertisements they click through. This information is mined so companies can deliver targeted ads.<\/p>\n

Some websites respectfully use temporary cookies (session cookies) that disappear when you close the browser. Many more websites use persistent cookies that remain on your hard drive indefinitely. Microsoft Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator, the two most popular browsers, still send out existing cookies even if you’ve disabled cookies in your browser settings. This means you must delete cookie files manually to keep from being tracked by third-party ad networks and spyware providers.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

And from the privacy.net<\/a> cookie demo<\/a>:<\/p>\n

“Some common uses for Internet cookies are:<\/p>\n