New Suits Challenge Online Cookies that Defy or Inhibit Deletion
At least six new lawsuits are challenging online cookies that track Internet users’ browsing habits, claiming the modern tracking tools defy or inhibit deletion.
Court rulings in 2001 and 2003 found that cookies were legal, the Wall Street Journal reports. The new suits, filed in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, claim that those holdings don’t apply to new, more sophisticated tracking technology. The would-be class actions claim violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.
One suit names CNN and the Travel Channel, claiming the companies track Internet surfing over mobile phones using unique ID numbers that can be “re-spawned” after deletion, the story says. Another suit against Fox Entertainment Group and Americanidol.com says the companies use “flash cookies” that can re-spawn deleted tracking files. The technology saves user preferences on a user’s computer—and possibly their online site visits—using Adobe’s Flash program.
