unauthorized cookies?

[scroce]

I built and maintain a website hosted on IIS. I have one user who is very particular about security. Yesterday he logged on to the site from home on a brand new PC, and he tells me that (either his browser or firewall, unclear which) alerted him that the site was trying to download cookies to his machine. He said there were > 10 cookies in all trying to be put on his machine. He didn't accept the cookies.

Now, this website doesn't employ cookies. It is an ASP site, and it seems that ASP will use a temporary cookie to store session information and the like, which is then deleted after the session is over. IE will flag this by design if you have your security options set that way.

However, it doesn't seem to be likely (from what he tells me) that his system was warning him about this kind of cookie.

Is it possible that some type of unknown, unauthorized, or malicious third party is somehow involved in this?

If so, what can I look for? I've noticed no odd behaviour on the webserver, and this user is the only one who has complained.

In an attempt to replicate this behaviour on my machine, I also tried maximizing my security options in IE, making it prompt for everything in Tools>Security, while simulatneously deleting all my cookies.

I cannot get this behaviour to replicate so far.

Any ideas?





I am a nobody, and nobody is perfect; therefore, I am perfect.

 

[BillyRayPreachersSon]

IE will warn about all types of cookies - including session cookies. This warning can be modified or turned off completely in the IE settings.

Hope this helps,
Dan


[tt]D'ya think I got where I am today because I dress like Peter Pan here?[/tt]

 

[scroce]

do you think there is any possiblity of a third party (spyware or somesuch) somehow latching on to our web server and trying to deliver cookies?

I've never heard of this happening, and i've seen no evidence of it, but as you know malware/spyware people are clever.

I think it was probably the session cookie, but I'm just checking out what you here at tek-tips think.

I am a nobody, and nobody is perfect; therefore, I am perfect.

 

[BillyRayPreachersSon]

As someone who has enabled all cookie warnings, I would pretty much guarantee that it is the session cookie (the amount of times IIS sends these just for browsing a simple site is staggering - and annoying, too).

Dan



[tt]D'ya think I got where I am today because I dress like Peter Pan here?[/tt]

 

[scroce]

yeah that's pretty much what i thought.

much obliged for the discussion!

I am a nobody, and nobody is perfect; therefore, I am perfect.