These are as follows: Active LoginsĪctive logins are when a user signs into a website and then migrates away from that site while their web browser keeps them logged in. Every piece of history falls into one of seven categories. This data ranges from files downloaded to sites visited to other important tidbits. Taking a broad view, “history” in this situation refers to information that a user generates while using a web browser. How web browsers handle your historyīefore we get into the notion of deleting cookies and other elements of a user’s browsing history, it’s important that we first understand how users generate histories while browsing the web. In this article, I will discuss why users might consider deleting and clearing these elements at least periodically (if not regularly). You’ve probably heard someone at one point tell you to delete your cookies/browsing history and/or clear your cache when you were experiencing technical issues online. Attackers could steal them to gain access to our accounts and, by extension, make off with our personal information.
But as the Yahoo incident illustrates, cookies also pose a threat. Cookies are a tool that, along with browsing history, help web browsers like Mozilla Firefox speed up users’ browsing sessions.
