ok i ran a virus scan on my dads laptop just to be sure

 

is this bad?

 

when i run a test it comes up with a list of things like this lol

 

 

 

 

 

 

and when i double click and select something it comes up like this:

 

 

 

 

 

help pl0x? i found a folder full of the cookies or whatever idk wtf is going on

 

 

 

help?

That nothing much to worry about, just hit delete then the scans complete.

 

If you get anything other then tracking cookies start worrying.

so i found the folder that they are all in, i delete them all?

Yes, no?

Yes.

 

AVG should give you the option to delete them anyway (once the scan is complete).

To help a bit more, I'll explain a bit about cookies. Cookies are small text files full of data sent to you by a server. Each time you access that server, you send the cookie back. The data in the cookie contains things like site preferences, shopping cart items, and authenticating you so you don't have to enter your user name and password each time. Cookies can also be used to track your web browsing habits. This is usually used by ad companies so they can see what websites you go to, and give you a pop up or banner ad, or just track statistics.

 

 

 

In most cases, tracking cookies aren't anything to worry about, and you should just let your scanning program delete them.

Like said, tracking cookies are the least of your worries if (and when) any turn up in a virus scan. There is no possible way in which they can harm your computer, you will even get tracking cookies from visiting tip.it and runescape.com.

 

 

 

The only nuisance is the minimal (almost non-existent) disk space they consume, and they can clutter search results if you seek a specific file on your computer. Just delete them periodically either through your browser, a program like CCleaner or AVG.

 

 

 

As Caxis mentioned though, you may not always want to remove cookies if you use multiple forums/email services. If you do, you will be forced to log in again on every one of them. If you use a non-public computer which you know nobody else has access to, it's just a waste of time to log in every single time you visit a page.