This page is dedicated to discussing intentional misinformation , or 'Net hoaxes. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own, and do not reflect policy or intentions of any persons, groups or companies referred to or linked from this site. Get a fresh perspective with Korova Truth . A recent piece in a local newspaper alerted me to one of the latest in an apparently unending supply of hysterical hoaxes that encourage paranoia and distrust of computers and those who support the use of them. Though the story is imaginative, it's also technically flawed.
Cookies are benign data nuggets used by Web browsers.
And it's a hoax. No such function exists, AOL executives have insisted. This story even has a twist that I like. One imagines darkened rooms filled with demonic techies swooping down onto Ma and Pa's computer and rooting around for unlicensed copies of ViruScan or Duke Nukem. If you're an AOL user, you have little to fear.