Netscape instituted cookies as a means to help websites gather user
state information during a web visit. That’s because a web server,
unlike a business application such as a shopping cart, is not able to
recollect who a visitor is or what transactions took place.
A server simply sends out web pages when requested but does not
record any data on who requested the page, where it went or any
associated user behavior. So cookies were created to save this
information. Cookies are used to enhance the browser experience, improve
usability for customer interactions, increase purchase behavior and
improve commercial website performance.
Cookies are either 1st party or 3rd party, depending on the type of
website that sets them. A 1st party cookie is set by the site that the
user is visiting, e.g., a hypothetical website called MySite.com. A 3rd
party cookie is set by a third party site providing a service to the
main website, e.g., a web analytics vendor or an ad network.
A 1st party cookie can contain personal information such as user name
and a login ID, thus the user is automatically recognized when s/he
visits a site. If cookies did not store this data, websites would have
to request it every time the user returns to the site.
Third-party cookies are less valuable to the user. A web analytics
vendor cookie tracks a visitor’s path through MySite.com so it can
identify which pages work and which don’t, optimizing for better site
performance. The ad network cookies track user behavior across multiple
sites, helping them classify user behavior. This facilitates the
targeting of ads to user segments. For instance, frequent visitors of
sports sites are served sports relevant ads. While anonymous, this
multi-site aggregation of visitor information is what has caused a furor
in the ongoing privacy controversy.
Deleting 3rd Party Cookies: Browsers give users
various options for deleting cookies. This, and the proliferation of
anti-spyware, has resulted in the increasing deletion of 3rd party
cookies. Cookie rejection is also enabled by new software mechanisms
that block cookies from ever being set on users’ computers.
Jupiter Research estimates that 3rd party cookie deletion runs 39
percent per month. The cookie rejection rate rose to 12.4 percent in
April 2005 from 2.84 percent in January 2004. Naturally, this can
distort key metrics, artificially inflating unique visitor counts and
undercounting repeat visitors. Mass cookie deletion and rejection can
make it appear that a website’s new visitors are increasing while
returning visitors are decreasing, a change in visitor behavior that is
Solutions for the Cookie Dilemma: To counteract the
skew, client-side web analytics vendors have enabled their cookies to
be set by their client’s website, making them 1st party cookies, which
are less frequently deleted. While not preventing all inaccuracies
(users can still delete all cookies or use different computers), this
seems to be stemming the tide.
An alternate solution suggested by Jupiter Research is to use
Macromedia Flash Local Shared Objects (LSOs) as a cookie replacement or
backup. Similar to a cookie, an LSO is a text file that can be read only
by the website creating it. There’s an extra benefit to using LSOs –
browsers and anti-spyware programs can’t delete them, and most users
don’t know how. While this works for now, it won’t be long before
privacy advocates educate users on how to eliminate these as well.
The solution to the cookie dilemma may be in changing the
nomenclature to better describe cookies since some users see cookies as
adding to the browser experience while others see them as an invasion of
privacy. It’s easy to get confused between 1st Party and 3rd Party
cookies – like, which is helpful and which is of questionable value? In
the end, every user has to decide for him/herself whether or not to
delete cookies while weighing the pros and cons.
Netscape ilianzisha kuki kama njia ya kusaidia tovuti kukusanya habari ya hali ya mtumiaji wakati wa ziara ya wavuti. Hiyo ni kwa sababu seva ya mtandao, tofauti na maombi ya biashara kama vile gari la ununuzi, haiwezi kukumbuka ni nani mgeni au ni shughuli zipi zilizofanyika. Seva hutuma tu kurasa za wavuti wakati zinapoombwa, lakini hairekodi data yoyote juu ya nani aliomba ukurasa, ilikwenda wapi au tabia yoyote ya mtumiaji inayohusiana. Kwa hivyo kuki ziliundwa kuhifadhi habari hii. Cookies hutumiwa kuboresha uzoefu wa kivinjari, kuboresha usability kwa mwingiliano wa wateja, kuongeza tabia ya ununuzi na kuboresha utendaji wa tovuti ya kibiashara. Cookies ni ya chama cha kwanza au cha tatu, kulingana na aina ya tovuti ambayo huweka. Cookies ya chama cha kwanza huwekwa na tovuti ambayo mtumiaji anatembelea, kwa mfano, tovuti ya dhana inayoitwa MySite.com. Cookie ya chama cha tatu imewekwa na tovuti ya chama cha tatu inayotoa huduma kwa wavuti kuu, kwa mfano, muuzaji wa uchambuzi wa wavuti au mtandao wa matangazo. Cookies za chama cha kwanza zinaweza kuwa na habari za kibinafsi kama jina la mtumiaji na kitambulisho cha kuingia, kwa hivyo mtumiaji hutambuliwa moja kwa moja wakati anatembelea tovuti. Ikiwa kuki hazingeweka data hii, tovuti zingeweza kuihitaji kila wakati mtumiaji anarudi kwenye tovuti. Cookies za chama cha tatu hazina thamani sana kwa mtumiaji. Vipande vya wavuti vya uchambuzi wa wavuti hufuatilia njia ya mgeni kupitia MySite.com ili iweze kutambua ni kurasa zipi zinafanya kazi na zipi hazifanyi kazi, kuboresha utendaji bora wa tovuti. Cookies za mtandao wa matangazo hufuatilia tabia ya mtumiaji katika tovuti nyingi, na kuwasaidia kuainisha tabia ya mtumiaji. Hii inawezesha lengo la matangazo kwa makundi ya watumiaji. Kwa mfano, wageni wa mara kwa mara wa tovuti za michezo hutumika matangazo yanayohusiana na michezo. Ingawa haijulikani, mkusanyiko huu wa tovuti nyingi za habari za wageni ndio umesababisha msukosuko katika mzozo wa faragha unaoendelea. Kufuta Cookies za Chama cha Tatu: Vifaa vya kuvinjari hutoa watumiaji chaguzi mbalimbali za kufuta cookies. Hii, na kuenea kwa anti-spyware, imesababisha kuondolewa kwa kuongezeka kwa kuki za chama cha tatu. Kukataa kuki pia inawezeshwa na mifumo mpya ya programu ambayo kuzuia kuki kutoka kuwekwa kwenye kompyuta za watumiaji. Jupiter Research inakadiria kuwa kufuta kuki ya chama cha tatu huendesha asilimia 39 kwa mwezi. Kiwango cha kukataa kuki kiliongezeka hadi 12.4% mnamo Aprili 2005 kutoka 2.84% mnamo Januari 2004. Kwa kawaida, hii inaweza kupotosha metriki muhimu, kuongezeka kwa bandia kwa idadi ya wageni wa kipekee na kupunguza idadi ya wageni wa mara kwa mara. Kufuta na kukataa kwa cookie kwa wingi kunaweza kuonekana kuwa wageni wapya wa wavuti wanaongezeka wakati wageni wanaorudi wanapungua, mabadiliko katika tabia ya mgeni ambayo ni Suluhisho la Cookie Dilemma: Ili kukabiliana na upendeleo, wauzaji wa uchambuzi wa wavuti wa upande wa mteja wamewezesha kuki zao kuwekwa na wavuti ya mteja wao, kuwafanya kuwa kuki za chama cha kwanza, ambazo hufutwa mara chache. Ingawa haizuii ukosefu wote wa usahihi (watumiaji bado wanaweza kufuta kuki zote au kutumia kompyuta tofauti), hii inaonekana kuzuia wimbi. Suluhisho mbadala la Jupiter Research ni kutumia Macromedia Flash Local Shared Objects (LSO) kama mbadala wa kuki au chelezo. Kama vile kuki, LSO ni faili ya maandishi ambayo inaweza kusomwa tu na tovuti inayoiunda. Kuna faida ya ziada ya kutumia LSO - browsers na programu za kupambana na spyware haziwezi kufuta, na watumiaji wengi hawajui jinsi ya kufanya hivyo. Wakati hii inafanya kazi kwa sasa, haitakuwa muda mrefu kabla ya watetezi wa faragha kuelimisha watumiaji juu ya jinsi ya kuondoa hizi pia. Suluhisho la tatizo la kuki linaweza kuwa katika kubadilisha nomenclature ili kuelezea vizuri kuki, kwani watumiaji wengine wanaona kuki kama kuongeza uzoefu wa kivinjari, wakati wengine wanaona kama uvamizi wa faragha. Ni rahisi kuchanganyikiwa kati ya 1st Party na 3rd Party cookies kama, ambayo ni muhimu na ambayo ni ya thamani ya mashaka? Mwishowe, kila mtumiaji lazima aamue mwenyewe ikiwa atafuta kuki au la wakati akipima faida na hasara.