A recent NordVPN research has discovered that over 54 billion cookies have been leaked on the dark web. Surprisingly, 17% of these cookies were still active.
What are cookies and why are they important?
- How do cookies work? Cookies are small pieces of information that websites store in your browser. They are essential to the functioning of many pages because they allow the server to recognise users and remember their preferences. For example, when you log in to an account, the server provides you with a cookie that is used to identify you on subsequent visits without the need to re-enter your credentials.
- Risks of stolen cookies: If a hacker gains access to your active cookies, they could log into your accounts without needing to know your passwords or even multi-factor authentication (MFA). Cookies may also contain other sensitive data, such as names and locations.
Hallazgos de la investigación:
Types of cookies found: Out of the 54 billion cookies analysed, only 17% were active. Although this may not appear to be a significant percentage, it still represents over nine billion cookies. Inactive cookies can still jeopardise user privacy, as hackers can exploit the stored information for future abuse or manipulation. It is worth noting that Google accounts for over 2.5 billion of these cookies, with an additional 692 million coming from YouTube.
Conclusion:
In summary, cookies, although seemingly harmless, can be a valuable target for hackers. It is important to be aware of their existence and take steps to protect our online privacy.