The dangers of storing cleartext sensitive information in a cookie? | Tutorial & examples | Snyk Learn (2024)

FAQs

Is it safe to store sensitive data in cookies? ›

A cookie should never contain any sensitive information, especially PII, because cookies are relatively easy for anyone to view if they have access to a browser that the victim has used.

Cookies by themselves do not pose security risks, however, they can be used by cybercriminals to impersonate the user, collect financial data, access their accounts or to steal passwords that are stored in the browser.

Cookies are usually used to save some settings you've set on a certain website, or keep tokens which are used by websites to 'remember' you and not make you type your password again. Sensitive details such as passwords and/or personal information such as addresses and phone numbers.

Cookie poisoning through cross-site scripting (XSS)

Usually, attackers find a page that is vulnerable to XSS injection. By inserting a malicious script into the page, they can get the page to send them the session cookies of everyone who views the page. This way, they can gain access to the data of all these users.

That's because cybercriminals are constantly on the prowl for personally identifiable information stored in cookies, which they can exploit and/or sell on the dark web. Knowing how to clear cookies and cache from your browser is an important step in protecting your personal data online.

By tracking users' browsing habits, third-party cookies contribute to the creation of detailed profiles, raising serious privacy concerns. The accumulation of such information allows for the targeted delivery of advertisem*nts and content, often without users' explicit consent.

Tracking User Activity: Cookies can be used to track a user's activity on a website, including their browsing history and actions such as clicking on buttons and filling out forms. This information can be used by companies to target advertisem*nts and analyze consumer behavior.

Cookies can't harm your device—they're not a form of malware and can't affect how your computer runs. But keep in mind they do affect your online privacy.

Cookies track and store personal information about the user, which websites can use in the future. They store data such as name, residential address, email address, and phone number.

Room temperature: Use airtight containers, cookie jars, or plastic bags to prevent air exposure and moisture loss. Keep cookies in a cool, dry area. Refrigerated: Use airtight containers or sealed plastic bags to store cookies in the fridge. Monitor the moisture level to avoid condensation.

What information should be stored in cookies? ›

Cookies contain information such as pages visited on a website, items in the shopping cart, login details, search history and language preferences. They can also collect personally identifiable information such as name, email address, phone number and other personal data that users enter through website forms.

Websites using cookies can collect your information and sell it to third parties. Changing your cookie preferences or removing cookies and other website data in Safari may change or remove them in other apps, including Dashboard.

Cookies (or other session tokens) not generated or transmitted securely are vulnerable to hijacking or poisoning. Cross-site scripting (XSS) is a common way to steal cookies, but a number of methods, including packet sniffing and brute force, may be used to gain unauthorized access to cookies.

The purpose of the secure flag is to prevent cookies from being observed by unauthorized parties due to the transmission of the cookie in clear text. A secure cookie can only be transmitted over an encrypted connection (HTTPS).

Answers (1) The downside of using cookie instead of cache is that cookies are stored on a user's device, meaning they can be accessed by malicious actors if the user's device is compromised. Cookies also have limited storage space, so if the data you are storing is large it may not be well suited for a cookie.

Cookies contain information such as pages visited on a website, items in the shopping cart, login details, search history and language preferences. They can also collect personally identifiable information such as name, email address, phone number and other personal data that users enter through website forms.

Both Local and Session Storage provide a simple and efficient way to store data on the client side without frequent server trips. However, due to their limitations in security and capacity, it's crucial to use them judiciously and not for storing sensitive information.