Anyway, I don't see the use of cookies by the government as an invasion of privacy, If I saw cookies as a problem I would disable them through my browser. No if the govt was using some technology to read other sites cookies from my HDD then I may be a little peeved. However, I don't see that happening.

Dung; I don't look at use of cookies as a breach of privacy either, mainly because I can deal with the consequences of that. 86% of websites take information off of your computer via cookies, they take your name, email, some take your address, SSN, and a bunch of other information. They then take this and sell it to other companies, even though most say they won't. Only 14% of the websites that gather information refrain from giving it to others.
That means, if you get a lot of junk email, you must surf the web quite a bit. I barely surf the web, and I get close to no junk mail, but my brother is always looking up one thing or another and he gets about 5 messages a day about refinancing loans and how to get cheap medical treatment. Just an example.

Lates.

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Originally posted by Rogue:
86% of websites take information off of your computer via cookies, they take your name, email, some take your address, SSN, and a bunch of other information. They then take this and sell it to other companies, even though most say they won't. Only 14% of the websites that gather information refrain from giving it to others.
That means, if you get a lot of junk email, you must surf the web quite a bit. I barely surf the web, and I get close to no junk mail, but my brother is always looking up one thing or another and he gets about 5 messages a day about refinancing loans and how to get cheap medical treatment. Just an example.

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Info such as SSN and Email is gather by a website when you enter it. This is not contained in a cookie, but rather in thier database that you entered it into. If they choose to sell thier database then thats their choice. You can request for your information not to be distributed. This is law from I believe the FCC.

Where did you get your 86/14 percentages? I would like to see this source.

I get 0 spam in my private email accounts, my ISP accounts and my school address, I get 0 spam. I surf the web probably 10+ hours a day. The only email address that I frequently get Spam on is my 3d Retreat account which is posted in numerous spots on website so that bots that look for email address can frequent find it and add it to spam lists.

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Originally posted by Dungheap:
Speaking of cookies, does this version of UBB not support them?

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Yes, this board does and mine are working fine but a few others have said the same thing. I believe the reason is because you signed up with this account when I had the forums on the test server and once I have moved to the new server, the cookies may not be behaving correctly. Go to your preferences and I believe it will rebuilt your cookie.

- Let me state up front I hate cookies. I use several techniques to foil the cookies I don't like. However, in and of themselves cookies aren't malicious.

- As stated by DungHeap cookies themselves don't contain personal information such as SSNs.

- Who decided that the use of cookies on a dozen web sites meant that they were tracking for warez?? Cookies collect personal settings and, in some cases, travel information within a web site. There is NO WAY that a cookie can invoke itself to store additional information about a different site because the cookie thinks you might be looking at warez or pr0n.

- Snicker stated that he didn't think the Govt. should use "illegal" means to tack users. Without seeing the White House directive you cannot make the claim that the use of cookies on Federal web sites is "illegal" Illegal, by definition, means that there is a law prohibiting some action. I don't think that the President passed such a law which pertains to Fed agencies recently.

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Despite a White House prohibition, 13 government agencies are using technology that tracks the Internet habits

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The writer probably asked his MIS guy what a cookie is. Said MIS guy said that they can track movement within a site and are used to store site-specific data (e.g. login id and layout preferences). The writer took this to mean "internet habits." That doesn't mean that he is correct. I have reviewed the article at least 5 times now and nowhere does it talk about or warez.

Cookies aren't being used illegally (see my previous post in this thread) and don't transmit personal information. I can pull much of the same info from my web server logs.

Think a cookie can track my movements online? I don't. Want to prove me wrong?. Set a 3DR cookie to track me for the next 24 hours. Tell me when to start. I won't mess with the little cookie crumb at all.

Can't do it? That's right, you can't. Cookies are inert unless called by the page you are currently browsing.

Sen. Fred Thompson doesn't understand cookies either.

Finally, there is nothing wrong with a private company being used to compile cookie info. Stupid maybe, but I would hope that the Statement Of Work between the Fed agency and that company prohibits use or sale of any info.

I have head of a security issues in the past where people were able to read any of your cookies....and would we really know if MS and the GOV have a secret "backdoor" hehe. Ok, that was too far fetched but you never know.

I have no problems with people setting cookies on my computer because in more times than not, they make my browsing life easier. Turning cookes off just cause too many headaches.

Also, I never specifically said they were tracking warez, I stated it as a question in the subject In my text, I said "tracking your actions without permission". IF the gov has a method for tracking a type of persistant cookie, than according to this article they are doing so without permission.

I am going to have to agree with your speculation on the article though. There are too many unknowns and no specifics to be of any merit. Probably just another person preying on the insecurities of uninformed net users.