A cookie is a small piece of text sent to your browser by a website you visit. It helps the website to remember information about your visit, like your preferred language and other settings. That can make your next visit easier and the site more useful to you. Cookies play an important role. Without them, using the web would be a much more frustrating experience.
Cookies that are considered strictly necessary:
- Cookies to remember items in a shopping basket
- Cookies providing essential security measures
- Cookies used for quick loading and distribution of content
However, some common web services are NOT considered strictly necessary:
- Google Analytics, or similar software to analyse visitors
- Cookies that remember user preferences
- First and third party advertising cookies
- Facebook like buttons
Internet Explorer 8.0+
To prevent new cookies from being installed
- Go to Tools in the menu bar
- Click on Internet Options
- Click on the Privacy tab on top
- Click on “Sites”
- A new window should open called “Per Site Privacy Actions”
- Type in the URL of the site in the “Address of website” box and click on Block
To delete existing cookies
- Go to Tools in the menu bar
- Click on ‘Internet Options’
- Click on the Privacy tab on top
- Click on “Sites”
- A new window should open called “Per Site Privacy Actions”
- Under the “Managed websites” box should be a list of all the websites you have visited
- To remove all cookies click on the “Remove all” button
Internet Explorer 7.0+
To prevent new cookies from being installed
- Go to Tools in the menu bar
- Click on Options
- Click on the Privacy tab on top
- Click on the Advanced button
- Select “Prompt” for both “First party cookies” and “Third Party Cookies”
To delete existing cookies
- Go to Tools in the menu bar
- Click on Options
- Click on the General tab on top
- In the “Browsing History” section, click on “Delete”
- Click on “Delete Cookies”
Firefox 2.0+, 3.0+, 4.0+
To prevent new cookies from being installed
- Go to Tools in the menu bar
- Click on Options
- Click on the Privacy tab
- Disable the box that says “Accept Cookies From sites”
To delete existing cookies
- Go to Tools in the menu bar
- Click on Options
- Click on the Privacy tab
- Click on “Clear Now”
- Select “Cookies”
- Click on “Clear Private Data Now”
Google Chrome
To prevent new cookies from being installed
- Click on the spanner icon in the top right of the browser
- Click on “Options”
- Click on “Under the Bonnet” (UK) / “Under the Hood” (US)
- Click on the “Content settings” button in the Privacy section
- Ensure that “Allow local data to be set” is selected
- Select “Block sites from setting any data”
To delete existing cookies
- Click on the spanner icon in the top right of the browser
- Click on “Options”
- Click on “Under the Bonnet” (UK) / “Under the Hood” (US)
- Click on the “Content settings” button in the Privacy section
- Click on the “Clear browsing data” button
Many WordPress website owners also use Google Analytics to track how their website is used. This is also not considered strictly necessary.
In an example like this, you will need to take action to ensure you comply with the EU Cookie Law.
