"You Have Received a Cookie" Message in Internet Explorer

• Microsoft Internet Explorer versions 3.0, 3.01, 3.02, 4.0 for Windows 95
• Microsoft Internet Explorer versions 3.0, 3.01, 3.02a for Windows 3.1
• Microsoft Internet Explorer versions 3.0, 3.01, 3.02, 4.0 for Windows NT 4.0
• Microsoft Outlook Express version 4.0 for Windows 95
• Microsoft Outlook Express version 4.0 for Windows NT 4.0

SYMPTOMS

When you access a Web page using Internet Explorer, you may receive the following message:

Internet Explorer 4.0:

   Security Alert
   In order to provide a more personalized browsing experience,
   will you allow this Web site to put information on your computer?

   If you click Yes, the Web site will save a file
   on your computer. If you click No, the current Web
   page may not display correctly.

   Security Alert

   You have received a "cookie" (Internet information stored on your
   computer) from <site you are visiting>

   The contents are:

   30E1DDB374A59FB9F081B4EAD691ACAO

   It expires on <date of expiration decided by Web author>

   Do you want to accept it? If you click No, the page you are trying to
   view may not be displayed correctly.

CAUSE

You have Internet Explorer set to warn you before accepting cookies.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this problem, follow the steps in the appropriate section below:

Internet Explorer 4.0

Click Yes to accept the cookie or No to reject the cookie from this Web site. If you want to always accept cookies from any Web site without being prompted, click the "In the future, do not show this warning" check box to select it. You can also click More Info to see the cookie information.

You can turn off this cookie prompt by following these steps:

1. In Internet Explorer, click Internet Options on the View menu, and then click the Advanced tab.

2. Under Cookies, click one of the following options:

       - Always Accept Cookies
       - Prompt Before Accepting Cookies
       - Disable All Cookie Use
   

   NOTE: The cookie setting you choose also affects Outlook Express. To stop receiving cookies in Outlook Express, click Disable All Cookie Use.

3. Click OK.

Internet Explorer 3.x

To disable cookie warnings, follow these steps:

1. In Internet Explorer, click Options on the View menu, and then click the Advanced tab.

2. Click the Warn Before Accepting Cookies check box to clear it.

3. Click OK, and then click OK again.

MORE INFORMATION

Cookies are bits of information written to your computer about you and your visits to Web pages. They can include such information as:

Custom Pages

The MSN, The Microsoft Network, custom page is an example of a large cookie. After you select the options you want for your page, the server writes that information to your cookie to retrieve when you visit the page later.

Shopping

If you visit a site that features a "shopping cart" of items you wish to purchase, a cookie can keep track of what you put in the cart. If you need to leave and come back later, your shopping cart should be as you left it. This keeps you from having to start over on the page.

Tracking

A webmaster can give you a cookie to track repeat visits to a page.

Cookies are written to the Windows\Cookies folder in a file named <Username>.txt. The name of the file can vary with the name of the current user, who the cookie was written for, and the different pages offering cookies to your computer.

How to View Cookies You've Accepted

Internet Explorer 4.0:

1. On the View menu, click Options or Internet Options.

2. On the General tab, click Settings.

3. Click View Files.

1. On the View menu, click Options.

2. On the Advanced tab, click View Files.

Security Issues

Accepting a cookie does not give a Web site access to your computer or any personal information about you (including e-mail address), other than what you specified in the customized settings for that Web site (including any information you typed into forms on the Web site). Cookies can be read only by the server that set the cookie.

For information about cookies on Microsoft's Web site (www.microsoft.com), please view the following Web site:

   http://www.microsoft.com/regwiz/include/cookies.htm