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More Cookie Investigations

Posted by Zonk on from the chocolate-chip-or-oatmeal-raisin dept.

FancyKetchup writes "This time, C|Net is caught up in cookie paranoia with their 'special investigation' into use of cookies on the Senate and House representative websites." From the article: "Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., for instance, has been a longtime advocate of strict privacy laws to restrict commercial Web sites' data collection practices. In a statement posted on his own Web site, McCain assures visitors that 'I do not use 'cookies' or other means on my Web site to track your visit in any way.' But visiting mccain.senate.gov implants a cookie on the visitor's PC that will not expire until 2035. " Follow up to a story we reported on earlier.

13 of 201 comments (clear)

  1. Obviously... by __aaclcg7560 · · Score: 3, Funny

    This is a job for the Cookie Monster!

    1. Re:Obviously... by Guppy06 · · Score: 2, Funny

      Maybe the feds should take a hint from Cookie Monster's new take and realize "A cookie is a sometimes file."

    2. Re:Obviously... by Cookie_Monster_Troll · · Score: 1, Funny

      Me on topic for once. Me not get modded down this time. Me not get hopes up.

      --
      dum de dum de dum de dum de dum ...
  2. Amazing by GmAz · · Score: 4, Funny

    Its simply amazing that after being posted for a few minutes, mccain.senate.gov is now down. Hmmm...think we can take down www.microsoft.com if we all go there at exactly 4:00pm Pacific Standard Time and hit F5 20 times??

    --
    Click Click Bloody Click PANCAKES!
    1. Re:Amazing by Elixon · · Score: 2, Funny

      if (REFERER == "http://slashdot.org") {
          bring_site_down(); /* to don't look stupid if they discovered something bad on my site */
          notify_senator();
          send_to_lawyers(download_slashdot_article(REFERER) );
          spoof(404);
      } ;-)

      --
      Well, I've got to get back to work. When I stop rowing, the slave ship just goes in circles.
  3. "i did not have sex with that cookie" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Funny

    -- Senator John McCain.

    1. Re:"i did not have sex with that cookie" by Krach42 · · Score: 3, Funny

      That all depends on what the meaning of "is" is.

      --

      I am unamerican, and proud of it!
  4. Re: More Cookie Investigations by JeanBaptiste · · Score: 4, Funny

    got a link for that thing about the government-marijuana-cookie-tracking thing you menationed?

    not that I don't believe you, i'd just like to read more on it. //mmmm marijuana cookies

  5. Re: More Cookie Investigations by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Cookies are incredibly harmless compared to everything else floating around the internets.

    Indeed. Cookies are delicious delicacies.

  6. Re:Cookies are not all that evil by Shadow+Wrought · · Score: 2, Funny

    Surely typing 1-2-3-4-5 can't take that long?

    --
    If brevity is the soul of wit, then how does one explain Twitter?
  7. Re:I wonder why MS and Mozilla ... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    But they are bad. And developers who can't see it are just stupid. Netscape should never have proposed cookies, and IETF should never have accepted them, or any other tchnology which is intrusive and can potentially facilitate spying on users.

    BTW, I have never accepted an Internet cookie in my life, and never intend to, and will quash any other technologies that I can (eg disabling Flash). Oh, and I don't mind typing in data, if I need to (actually, I never need to - sites which require my dta are crossed off my list and for all intents and purposes are not part of MY Internet). But theoretically, if I was going to type in my data, the thought of having to do so more than once because, god forbid, I actually won't accept cookies, does not dissuade me one freaking bit.

    PS, I am posting this anonymouly only because the stupid Slashdot website developers won't allow me to register with a user name unless I will accept cookies. I would be long gone and slashdot for me a mere useless walled off dead zone of the Internet except for the fact that Slashdot still allows SOME cookie-free value in their website (such as a capability of anonymously posting), so I'll use the meager drippings I find useful here. Cookies suck, Flash sucks, Java Script sucks, active content sucks etc etc etc - but some developers are just clueless.

  8. Re:Someone needs to tell them about HTTP Sessions by Blue+Mushroom · · Score: 2, Funny

    Cassandra was a Trojan chick who for some reason was cursed by some god with the ability to see the future, however to have her predictions never ever be believed. She foresaw the fall of troy and told everybody but the Trojans ignored her. Contrast Cassandra, who is prophesying doom correctly, with Chicken Little who is freaked out over nothing. Thus endeth my picking of the nit.

    --

    "Humanity lives and dies by its capabilities of communication, or lack thereof."

  9. Self Slashdoting Host (SSH) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    From http://mccain.senate.gov/

    Sorry, the http://mccain.senate.gov/ web page you have requested is experiencing technical difficulties. The Webmaster has been alerted.

    You will be automatically redirected to the http://mccain.senate.gov/ Home page after 10 seconds.

    I love sites that slashdot themselves. It takes the work away from actually havign to pound the refresh button :-)