How Do I Enable Cookies on an iPad?
Cookies are generally turned on by default, so in many cases, you won’t need to enable them. So, if you haven’t changed your cookie settings, you’re all set! However, if you have ever changed your iPad privacy settings, you might have turned off cookies. If that’s the case, follow these steps to enable cookies on an iPad:
Tap Settings. Tap Safari. Remember, cookies are added to your browser by websites, so you control this preference for each browser, not at the operating system level. Here’s how to delete cookies if you need to. Go to the Privacy & Security section. There are two cookie-related options: Block All Cookies: This is pretty obvious. If the slider is set to on/green, Safari will block every cookie from every website. Move the slider to off/white and cookies are enabled on your iPad. Prevent Cross-Site Tracking: This one is a bit trickier. These cookies are specifically for advertising. They don’t generally provide the useful features some cookies offer. Cross-site tracking cookies are really just to help advertisers profile and target you. To allow every single cookie you encounter on the internet, leave this set to off/white. But, if you don’t want to be profiled by advertisers, you can set this to on/green and still benefit from other kinds of cookies.
What Are Browser Cookies?
As mentioned earlier, cookies are small files websites place on your device’s web browser when you visit the site. These files can contain all sorts of information, including your preferences and history for that site. Cookies help connect to site traffic analytics and advertising platforms, and also make it easier to log in, save articles or products, and for the site to make recommendations to you.
Block All Cookies: This is pretty obvious. If the slider is set to on/green, Safari will block every cookie from every website. Move the slider to off/white and cookies are enabled on your iPad. Prevent Cross-Site Tracking: This one is a bit trickier. These cookies are specifically for advertising. They don’t generally provide the useful features some cookies offer. Cross-site tracking cookies are really just to help advertisers profile and target you. To allow every single cookie you encounter on the internet, leave this set to off/white. But, if you don’t want to be profiled by advertisers, you can set this to on/green and still benefit from other kinds of cookies.
Most people leave at least some cookies enabled on their devices, since browsing the web without any cookies at all makes the experience more difficult than it needs to be. Many privacy-conscious people, though, do block advertising cookies, since they see the amount of data advertisers try to collect on them and their online behavior as intrusive (because of this sort of use, cookies are being phased out).
If you’re concerned about your online privacy, we’ve got articles to help you block ads on your iPhone and iPad and to teach you about iPad and iPhone privacy settings.
