Flash cookie
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Flash cookie
A data file that is stored in the user's computer by visiting a website that runs a Flash application. Officially called a "local shared object" (LSO), it functions like a regular browser cookie to personalize the user's experience, except that a Flash cookie can hold up to 100KB rather than only 4KB (see cookie). Clearing cookies in the Web browser does not clear Flash cookies. They must be cleared via Adobe Flash Player settings. See Evercookie.Copyright © 1981-2025 by The Computer Language Company Inc. All Rights reserved. THIS DEFINITION IS FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY. All other reproduction is strictly prohibited without permission from the publisher.
References in periodicals archive
Angwin in her article, the term "respawn" is widely used to refer to a
Flash cookie's ability to reinstall regular cookies.
Examples of such cookies include
Flash cookies in which user tracking data is stored in a little known Adobe Flash plug-in, and cache cookies in which the data is stored in the entity tags (eTags) used by browsers as a bandwidth saving mechanism.
* Since
flash cookies are not controlled by the browser, other browsers on the same machine can access the same
flash cookies.
Through the use of
flash cookies and other technologies, businesses are tracking the online behavior of consumers collecting information about the sites we visit and the things we buy and using that information to target their advertising.
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