Cookies
A cookie is a small file that is stored on your computer when you visit a website. Cookies contain various pieces of information that the website reads when you visit it again. They are used by most modern websites.
Cookies themselves are not harmful, they do not contain viruses or any other malicious code. They are used for various purposes, for sessions (e.g. logging into forums), for shopping carts in online stores, for displaying various advanced content on the website (e.g. maps, video), for maintaining website visit statistics, for supporting social media plugins, and also for displaying ads tailored to the web user.
The legal restriction of cookies is primarily a result of the misuse of cookie technology to track users and thus interfere with online privacy.
Types of cookies
Cookies can have a wide variety of components. Good cookies are very useful for visitors, especially for sessions, logins, shopping carts, and similar website tasks.
Some cookies are useful primarily for website owners. For example, they are used to monitor the number of visits, i.e. the reach of their website, and indirectly benefit end visitors, as they allow content authors to see which articles on the website are interesting to visitors, and based on feedback, they can bring the website closer to readers with more interesting content.
Some cookies, however, are not good, at least from the point of view of the Information Office. These unsavory cookies mainly record data about your online activities, which they then process and pass on the obtained information to third parties, most often advertisers. For example, this results in different advertisements being shown to different people online. Everyone sees advertisements for products and services that they are more likely to buy. This allows the owners of tracking cookies to earn more from advertising.
The Office of the Information Commissioner divides cookies primarily based on invasiveness:
- Temporary or session cookies
- Persistent or stored cookies
- Own cookies
- Other cookies
Each type of cookie is treated differently in the legislation and the Commissioner's guidelines, which makes it difficult for website owners and web developers to comply with the Electronic Communications Act (ZEKom-1) and the Personal Data Protection Act. Website owners are required to study the privacy issues of cookies in detail and to inform their website visitors about their use. In the case of more invasive cookies, they must obtain consent from visitors for their use.