By turning off cookies, you will prevent companies’ ads from being able to track your online behavior and personal information. However, this also means that some sites will malfunction, and you have to jot down the password every time you visit the website. If you don’t mind such cons, here is how to block all cookies on Mac & iPhone.
Where to Block All Cookies on Mac & iPhone
Before proceeding to the procedure, ensure your iPhone or Mac is updated to the latest OS. Also, do understand what cookies are.
What are Cookies?
Cookies are small files of information generated by a web server and further sent to the web browser. Web browsers on your Mac computer store cookies they receive for a predefined period or the length of users’ session on website. They attach the relevant cookies to any future request that users make to a web server.
The cookies help the website to understand the user, allowing the website to personalize the user experience. For instance, e-commerce websites use cookies to understand what users place in their shopping bags. In addition to that, some cookies are necessary for security purposes.
Steps to Block All Cookies on iPhone
Step 1: Launch the Settings App on your iPhone. Search and select Safari.
Step 2: Swipe down and tap Advanced.
Step 3: Hit on the toggle next to the Block All Cookies. For confirmation, click on Block All from a pop-up.
Steps to Block All Cookies on Mac
Step 1: Select Safari from the Mac menu bar. Click Settings…
Step 2: Select Advanced Menu. Uncheck the box next to the Block All Cookies.
Step 3: For confirmation, click on Block All from a pop-up.
Final Thought!
When you block all cookies on your Mac & iPhone, certain websites may become temporarily slower because they have to reload some of your previous content. Further, if you have relatable queries, please drop them in the comment box below.
Are there any exceptions to the rule of blocking all cookies on my Mac or iPhone?
No, there are exceptions to the rule of blocking all cookies on your Mac or iPhone.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of blocking all cookies on my Mac and iPhone?
Blocking all cookies on your Mac & iPhone can have advantages and disadvantages. Here are some of the common.
Advantages of blocking all cookies
- Enhanced Privacy: Blocking cookies on your device can protect the website and third-party advertisers from tracking your browsing activities and personal information about you. Overall! This will enhance your online privacy.
- Reduce Tracking: As we all know, cookies are used for tracking purposes to create user profiles for targeted websites. Thus, blocking cookies on your Apple device will reduce the amount of targeted ads on your browser.
- Protection Against Cross-site Scripting Attacks: Hackers across the browser use cookies to execute cross-site scripting attacks. Hence, blocking cookies on your device will decrease the risk of attack.
- Minimized Online Profiling: Cookies on your device are used to create profiles of users’ behaviors and interests. Blocking cookies will limit the amount of data collected for these profiles.
Disadvantage of blocking all cookies
- Decrease website functionality: Most websites rely on cookies for various features, such as saving login credentials, maintaining a shopping cart, and saving site preferences. Thus, blocking cookies will lead to a less functional browsing experience.
- Repeated Logins: Blocking cookies will let you frequently log in to websites that generally remember your login profiles.
- Loss of personalization: As we all know, cookies allow websites to personalize your browser experience per your settings and past interactions. This eventually means blocking cookies can result in a less-tailored browsing experience.
- Difficult in form-filling: Cookies remember all form information, such as addresses and names. Blocking all cookies on your iPhone & Mac will make you fill out the form manually.
- Potential compatibility issue: Some websites take the help of cookies to work correctly, but if all cookies are blocked, the website is likely to malfunction.
- Security verification: Some websites use cookies as part of their security measures. This means blocking cookies could result in frequent security verification processes.
- Limited user experience: Most of the websites use cookies to remember language, settings, and various user-specific configurations. It means blocking all cookies can cause limited user experience.
How can I check if cookies are still being stored on my Mac or iPhone after blocking them?
If you want to check whether the cookies are stored on your Mac or iPhone, follow the steps below.
Check cookies on Mac
Step 1: Click Safari from the mac Menubar. Select Settings…
Step 2: Go to the Privacy Menu. Click on the Manage Website Date
Step 3: Next to the Website Data.
On the next screen, you’ll see a list of websites that have stored cookies on your Mac computer.
Check cookies on iPhone
Step 1: Launch Settings App on your iPhone.
Step 2: Search and select Safari.
Step 3: Swipe down to the “Privacy & Security” menu. Enable toggle Prevent Cross-Site Tracking.
There, you’ll see the “Prevent Cross-site Tracking” toggle if it’s turned on; it means Safari is actively trying to prevent cross-site tracking, which means it’s blocking third-party cookies.
