Privacy Laws Against Computer Cookies
- Just by visiting websites, your computer is downloading cookies.internet - eingabefeld internet http://www image by pmphoto from Fotolia.com
Cookies' effect on privacy has been the topic of debate ever since their implementation. Cookies allow a website to store information about you such as logins, passwords as well as what is in your shopping cart. When you return to the website, you will not have to enter all that information all over again. However, cookies are also used by marketing firms to track your actions and history, selling that data to other companies. - The U.S. Constitution does not mention privacy directly. However, it has been declared by the U.S. Supreme Court a "penumbra right" in the case of Schmerber v. California. This means that the amendments to the Constitution indirectly cover privacy. Congress has enacted little else to the topic by the means of Internet privacy. The only direct action was the Patriot Act of 2001, which gave the FBI more authority to track and investigate Internet usage. There are no U.S. laws directly targeting the use of cookies.
- On Oct. 26, 2009, the European Union voted that users must give consent to have cookies on their computers. EU states will have until April, 26, 2011, to comply with the law. Websites that do not comply will have to pay a minimum fine of roughly 5,000 pounds.
- A new type of cookie, the flash cookie, adds further debate in the United States. This type of cookie uses flash so it is not stored in the same place that traditional HTTP cookies are. This means that the "delete cookies" option in your Web browser will not delete flash cookies. Since they are built with flash, they can "regenerate" themselves once they are deleted.
