Cookie Checker - Check Website Cookies

The Cookie Checker tool allows you to see the content of cookies getting dropped from a website or a particular URL. This can be useful for disgnosis of some kind web develpment issues or atleast allows you to see the content of cookie.

What are cookies? How Cookie checker is useful?

Cookies (translated from English as “cookie” literally “pie”, “cookie”) is, you can say, the label that Internet sites leave on the user's computer. When a user revisits a site, this site, thanks to cookies, already “recognizes” the user (as his own), and often you can not enter a password. 

Therefore, the question “what are cookies” can be answered that cookies are used to recognize (authenticate) the user when they visit the website again and display “personalized” pages that correspond to the user's needs.

Cookies store text information necessary for the functioning of a website, for example, your username and password, while you are traveling around the site. Then, when switching from one page of the site to a new page of the same site, you do not need to re-enter the password Or, your e-mail and nickname that you entered in the windows of the form when registering on the site can be stored there. When you open the form, these fields will no longer be required.

What are cookies in online stores

Cookies actively use online stores. This allows the user who accidentally or specially closed the window of the online store or browser, after the next entrance to the page of the online store to again see his basket with the goods previously selected in it. This is advantageous for online shopping, but convenient for the user, because you can not search again for what was selected.

I like comparing cookies to a wardrobe number. By itself, the number plate does not have much value, but on the other hand, it allows you to easily get your coat.

True, if the number falls into the wrong hands, you can stay without a coat. Also, cookies, if they fall into the hands of scammers, can be used against you.

For example, cookies can store the amount that must be paid for purchases, for example, in an online store. A fraudster (or hacker) can change this amount to a smaller one in order to put the difference in his pocket.

How do sites recognize a user using cookies?

Let us examine with a simple example how authentication (recognition) of a user occurs using cookies. Let's say you register for the first time on the Mile.ru website.

• In this case, you need to enter a username and password, after which this data is sent for processing to the Mail.ru server (that is, to powerful computers where all the Mail.ru information is stored and processed).

• If you entered your data correctly, then the Mail.ru server sends back a successful login page, but with cookies attached containing your identifier. In other words, with the help of cookies, Mile ru made his mark and remembered you.

• The next time you visit the site, then the browser with which you entered the site will automatically send cookies with your identifier to the Mail.ru server. The server checks on its basis the identifier (cookie) of such a user.

• If everything matches, then the browser “recognizes” the user, that is, automatically substitutes a password on the site, or at least issues a password in the form of a hint. In principle, it’s convenient - the user, without entering a username and password, “flies” to the desired site. If the user made any settings on the site, then thanks to cookies, these settings will be automatically restored.

Can cookies harm the user?

Despite the fact that cookies facilitate the work with sites, they cause certain concerns. For example, sometimes a user may receive files by e-mail that he did not request.

Or, for various reasons, cookies start to work incorrectly, they do not recognize the user. Then the user will not be able to access the site. If cookies do not work correctly, then sometimes this can lead to malicious actions by a fraudster or hacker.

Cookies are recorded once, with each new visit to the website, the browser sends them back to the server on which the site is located. Cookies can be created not only by the servers (on which the sites are located), but also individual scripts responsible for the execution of this function.

Are Cookies Viruses?

Cookies are not a program that can perform certain malicious actions. Cookies are a regular set of data written to a file, so it would be wrong to call them viruses. They are not able to erase information from your computer and cannot send anywhere such personal data as, for example, photos or videos.

Cookies can be temporary and permanent. For example, a server (in other words, a certain site) stores cookies that are tied to a specific date, after which they must be rewritten again. First of all, it is necessary to increase security.

What are cookies in the browser?

Cookies also have their drawbacks. For example, they are not tied to a computer, but to a browser, therefore, when changing the browser, it is necessary to go through a re-identification. In addition, often cookies are sent openly, which allows attackers to break into the session by getting them by scanning the network.

You must protect your cookies and not give them to anyone. After registering your account on any website, you can immediately delete all cookies. You can restore your rights with a username and password that are known only to you. However, the user rarely removes cookies.

There are situations when you are not at your computer, for example, at work or in an Internet cafe, and after you an outsider can sit on that computer and use your account (and you forgot to leave your account). To do this, an outsider just needs to open, for example, your mail and he will immediately get access to mail and all that is connected with this mail. In Yandex mail, it is thus easy to access Yandex.Money, Yandex.Disk, etc.

In such cases, it is better to clean cookies after each session on another computer.

What is cleaning cookies?

Many browsers have the ability to clear cookies, as well as set the expiration date of cookies. To do this, you need to find the appropriate tab in the browser settings and put checkmarks in the right places.

For example, in the Google Chrome browser settings, you can find the "Personal data" tab. It has a “Clear History" button. After clicking on this button, a window will open.

Why clean cookies?

Sometimes this helps with the incorrect operation of sites. Many affiliate programs work so that after clicking on the affiliate link from friend X, the cookies are recorded in the user's browser, that is, the cookie records that this user came from a link from friend X. If the user then buys something, then thanks to the cookie, the friend X will receive a commission from his partner for the fact that a sale was made through his link. Therefore, before clicking on an affiliate link, sometimes they write that first clean the cookies, and then follow my link. This is to ensure that the cookie entry is clean, no problem.