Hello friends as you know that cookies are
small
text files used to save information about an individual or their use
of a
web site. For instance, a cookie can be used to save your login
name, your
preferences for viewing content, or to track you as you browse the
Internet. According to a Jupiter
Research study, 58% of online users have deleted cookies from
their computer
and 39% of users do so on a monthly basis. This regular "cookie
tossing"
is causing direct marketers to see more invasive methods to track
individuals.
One of those methods is to set a "Local Shared Object," also known
as a "Flash cookie" to track individuals. Simply put, the idea
behind
this tracking is to set two cookies on the user's machine--a
standard cookie
that the consumer may erase, and a second Flash cookie that the user
probably
will keep, because the existence of Flash cookies is not well known.
Flash cookies are set through a mechanism in Macromedia's Flash MX
player.
According to Macromedia, 98% of computer have some version of Flash
on their
computers.
Normal web cookie requires the use
of a scripting language outside of Flash (Javascript or ASP, for
example).
Placing a Local Shared Object only requires the use of
ActionScript--the scripting
language that controls Flash movies. In its newest version, Flash
MX, Macromedia
introduced the Local Shared Object, which provided an easier way to
store
information.
Normal web cookies can be managed via
the preferences
dialog of most web browsers, but no similar utility is included for
these
Flash cookies. It is possible for Flash cookies to remain on user's
computer
indefinitely, as there is no mechanism to set an expiration date on
Flash
cookies.Flash ccookies are also known as PIE (persistent identification element)
Who can access a Flash cookie?
As with normal web cookies, a domain can only access data that it
created;
it is not allowed to read Flash cookies created by other domains.
This prevents
sites from observing user behavior at other sites.
Where are Flash cookies stored?
Flash cookies are stored in a special directory depending on the
operating
system on the client machine. They are arranged in directories
according to
the site that placed them on the computer (look for a file with a
.SOL extension):
- Windows C:\Documents and Settings\[username]\Application Data\Macromedia\Flash Player
- Macintosh OSX /Users/[username]/Library/Preferences/Macromedia/Flash Player
- GNU-Linux ~/.macromedia
Flash cookie cleaners/viewers:-
- Flash Cookie Cleaner.com
- Flash Cookies Cleaner by HotCleaner
- Flash Cookie Killer
- FlashCookiesView
- Flush Flash
- Ghostery
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