Web cookies (also called HTTP cookies, browser cookies, or simply cookies) are small pieces of data that websites store on your device (computer, phone, etc.) through your web browser. They are used to remember information about you and your interactions with the site.
Purpose of Cookies:
Session Management:
Keeping you logged in
Remembering items in a shopping cart
Saving language or theme preferences
Personalization:
Tailoring content or ads based on your previous activity
Tracking & Analytics:
Monitoring browsing behavior for analytics or marketing purposes
Types of Cookies:
Session Cookies:
Temporary; deleted when you close your browser
Used for things like keeping you logged in during a single session
Persistent Cookies:
Stored on your device until they expire or are manually deleted
Used for remembering login credentials, settings, etc.
First-Party Cookies:
Set by the website you're visiting directly
Third-Party Cookies:
Set by other domains (usually advertisers) embedded in the website
Commonly used for tracking across multiple sites
Authentication cookies are a special type of web cookie used to identify and verify a user after they log in to a website or web application.
What They Do:
Once you log in to a site, the server creates an authentication cookie and sends it to your browser. This cookie:
Proves to the website that you're logged in
Prevents you from having to log in again on every page you visit
Can persist across sessions if you select "Remember me"
What's Inside an Authentication Cookie?
Typically, it contains:
A unique session ID (not your actual password)
Optional metadata (e.g., expiration time, security flags)
Analytics cookies are cookies used to collect data about how visitors interact with a website. Their primary purpose is to help website owners understand and improve user experience by analyzing things like:
How users navigate the site
Which pages are most/least visited
How long users stay on each page
What device, browser, or location the user is from
What They Track:
Some examples of data analytics cookies may collect:
Page views and time spent on pages
Click paths (how users move from page to page)
Bounce rate (users who leave without interacting)
User demographics (location, language, device)
Referring websites (how users arrived at the site)
Here’s how you can disable cookies in common browsers:
1. Google Chrome
Open Chrome and click the three vertical dots in the top-right corner.
Go to Settings > Privacy and security > Cookies and other site data.
Choose your preferred option:
Block all cookies (not recommended, can break most websites).
Block third-party cookies (can block ads and tracking cookies).
2. Mozilla Firefox
Open Firefox and click the three horizontal lines in the top-right corner.
Go to Settings > Privacy & Security.
Under the Enhanced Tracking Protection section, choose Strict to block most cookies or Custom to manually choose which cookies to block.
3. Safari
Open Safari and click Safari in the top-left corner of the screen.
Go to Preferences > Privacy.
Check Block all cookies to stop all cookies, or select options to block third-party cookies.
4. Microsoft Edge
Open Edge and click the three horizontal dots in the top-right corner.
Go to Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Cookies and site permissions.
Select your cookie settings from there, including blocking all cookies or blocking third-party cookies.
5. On Mobile (iOS/Android)
For Safari on iOS: Go to Settings > Safari > Privacy & Security > Block All Cookies.
For Chrome on Android: Open the app, tap the three dots, go to Settings > Privacy and security > Cookies.
Be Aware:
Disabling cookies can make your online experience more difficult. Some websites may not load properly, or you may be logged out frequently. Also, certain features may not work as expected.
Expert Advice: “Get Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable”
Jeffrey Hudson Jr. ’07 MBA, the co-founder of One Light Research, a media and operations advisory firm dedicated to setting strategy and growth for Fortune 500 clients, had three key pieces of advice for UConn graduate students: Continue Reading
John Elliott, dean, greets School of Business alumni gathered at a rooftop reception celebrating the opening of the first residence hall to serve the Stamford campus. (Nathan Oldham/UConn School of Business)
Business Alumni Overjoyed with Direction of Stamford Campus; Opening of New Residence Hall
Pengfei Yang ’15 MSBAPM is several years into a great career as a senior business analyst at Charter Communications, but on Aug. 17 he longed to be a UConn student again.
Yang was among 75 School of Business alumni gathered at a rooftop reception celebrating the opening of the first residence hall to serve the Stamford campus, located at 900 Washington Boulevard in the heart of downtown. Continue Reading
Seeking Alpha – Football season is kicking off! So starting opening day (September 7th) the ADS ARE COMING!
Sponsorships in the NFL are big business, in 2016 sponsorship revenue generated $1.25 billion for the year. That was a 4.3% increase over 2015 despite NFL ratings issues (source). Spread out, $1.25 billion was spent over 256 games in regular season and then playoffs.
Hartford Business Journal – Aspiring entrepreneurs with technology ideas that could help the insurance industry are invited to vie for a $5,000 first prize next month during a hackathon weekend at Upward Hartford, featuring top regional developers, designers, coaches, entrepreneurs, mentors and judges from Boston, New York City and Silicon Valley.
After 1500 km and 4 days of driving from the South Island we arrived in Auckland. It took much less time to move into my new home than my places at UConn. This is probably since I was only allowed a 50 lb. bag and a carry-on when I came to New Zealand, compared to the truck-fulls of stuff I spent moving out of the Oaks on the Square in May. After living in an off-campus apartment for two years I was moving back into a dorm. Continue Reading
UConn Today – UConn’s investments in its regional campuses are drawing record numbers of talented new freshmen to those locations, joining their highly accomplished peers who are coming this week to UConn Storrs to begin their college careers.
Almost one-third of UConn’s new freshmen this year chose to enroll at one of the four regional campuses, up from about one-quarter of the freshmen in fall 2015. The growth is particularly evident at UConn Stamford, where new student housing that opened last week helped propelled the enrollment of new freshmen by 50 percent over last year.
Digital Insurance – LIMRA has partnered with the University of Connecticut’s School of Business in supporting financial services companies’ analytics projects.
According to research by the life insurance trade association, 80% of organizations are now piloting or implementing at least one advanced analytics initiative. Yet, a big challenge remains finding the right talent and skill sets to meet growing industry needs.
Hartford Courant – Hundreds of people crowded in front of the University of Connecticut’s downtown campus Wednesday for its grand opening, a $140 million investment that comes with lofty expectations for the role the school will play in the city’s future.
After years of planning, the new downtown UConn Hartford campus opened Wednesday to the cheers of scores of onlookers who gathered at 10 Prospect St., where the campus is anchored at the historic Hartford Times building.
The move returns UConn to its roots in Hartford, where it had been located from its opening in 1939 until it moved in 1970 to West Hartford. It also helps UConn fulfill core aspects of its academic and service missions, while establishing a classic urban campus that complements the capital city and will become part of its fabric.
The CT Mirror – For nearly a half-century, the University of Connecticut has had no place to call its own in the state’s capital city. Today that changes as Connecticut’s flagship university opens the doors of its new $140-million downtown branch campus on Prospect Street.