Web cookies (also called HTTP cookies, browser cookies, or simply cookies) are small pieces of data that websites store on your device (computer, phone, etc.) through your web browser. They are used to remember information about you and your interactions with the site.
Purpose of Cookies:
Session Management:
Keeping you logged in
Remembering items in a shopping cart
Saving language or theme preferences
Personalization:
Tailoring content or ads based on your previous activity
Tracking & Analytics:
Monitoring browsing behavior for analytics or marketing purposes
Types of Cookies:
Session Cookies:
Temporary; deleted when you close your browser
Used for things like keeping you logged in during a single session
Persistent Cookies:
Stored on your device until they expire or are manually deleted
Used for remembering login credentials, settings, etc.
First-Party Cookies:
Set by the website you're visiting directly
Third-Party Cookies:
Set by other domains (usually advertisers) embedded in the website
Commonly used for tracking across multiple sites
Authentication cookies are a special type of web cookie used to identify and verify a user after they log in to a website or web application.
What They Do:
Once you log in to a site, the server creates an authentication cookie and sends it to your browser. This cookie:
Proves to the website that you're logged in
Prevents you from having to log in again on every page you visit
Can persist across sessions if you select "Remember me"
What's Inside an Authentication Cookie?
Typically, it contains:
A unique session ID (not your actual password)
Optional metadata (e.g., expiration time, security flags)
Analytics cookies are cookies used to collect data about how visitors interact with a website. Their primary purpose is to help website owners understand and improve user experience by analyzing things like:
How users navigate the site
Which pages are most/least visited
How long users stay on each page
What device, browser, or location the user is from
What They Track:
Some examples of data analytics cookies may collect:
Page views and time spent on pages
Click paths (how users move from page to page)
Bounce rate (users who leave without interacting)
User demographics (location, language, device)
Referring websites (how users arrived at the site)
Here’s how you can disable cookies in common browsers:
1. Google Chrome
Open Chrome and click the three vertical dots in the top-right corner.
Go to Settings > Privacy and security > Cookies and other site data.
Choose your preferred option:
Block all cookies (not recommended, can break most websites).
Block third-party cookies (can block ads and tracking cookies).
2. Mozilla Firefox
Open Firefox and click the three horizontal lines in the top-right corner.
Go to Settings > Privacy & Security.
Under the Enhanced Tracking Protection section, choose Strict to block most cookies or Custom to manually choose which cookies to block.
3. Safari
Open Safari and click Safari in the top-left corner of the screen.
Go to Preferences > Privacy.
Check Block all cookies to stop all cookies, or select options to block third-party cookies.
4. Microsoft Edge
Open Edge and click the three horizontal dots in the top-right corner.
Go to Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Cookies and site permissions.
Select your cookie settings from there, including blocking all cookies or blocking third-party cookies.
5. On Mobile (iOS/Android)
For Safari on iOS: Go to Settings > Safari > Privacy & Security > Block All Cookies.
For Chrome on Android: Open the app, tap the three dots, go to Settings > Privacy and security > Cookies.
Be Aware:
Disabling cookies can make your online experience more difficult. Some websites may not load properly, or you may be logged out frequently. Also, certain features may not work as expected.
FOI #22-448 (12-20-22, 1:49 pm) - Subject - HigherEd Study is conducting a national research study to better understand the trends and practices related to student medical withdrawals.
Name - Kyle Elliot
Affiliation - HigherEd Study
HigherEd Study is conducting a national research study to better understand the trends and practices related to student medical withdrawals and leaves of absence. - Undergraduate Students
Typically, this information is managed through the enrollment management, bursar, or student financial services office, but it may also involve your campus offices for student health and counseling.
Please provide the following enrollment information via email for the University of Connecticut as soon as practical and not later than February 1, 2023.
- The number of students who completed an official medical withdrawal in 2019, 2020, and 2021.
- The number of refunds provided to students who completed a medical withdrawal in 2019, 2020, and 2021.
- Provide a sample for how the institution discloses its refund and medical withdrawal policies to students.
Please note that this request is designed specifically to be easy to complete. While we are willing to pay for the direct costs involved with responding to this request, please understand this request is narrowly focused and information should be readily available for schools that participate in the federal financial aid program. Further, no personal student information is requested.
In addition, we would be pleased to provide a report to you and your enrollment management colleagues to better benchmark trends in student medical withdrawals.
FOI #22-446 (12-19-22, 2:55 am) - Subject - List of respondents for the ePortfolio System RFI (KA071122)
Name - Jennifer Fabugais
Affiliation - Deltek
Good day! I'm submitting this FOI request to obtain the list of vendors who responded to the ePortfolio System RFI (KA071122) which closed last July 26, 2022. Please advise me of any potential fees prior to completing this request. Thank you.
FOI #22-445 (12-19-22, 1:33 am) - Subject - RFP MF071122 - Long Island Sound Public Perception Survey (PPS)
Name - Patrick Moir
Affiliation -
In accordance with the Connecticut Freedom of Information Act §1-200 et seq., I would like to request copies of documentation pertaining to the RFP process for MF071122 dealing with the Long Island Sound Public Perception Survey.
Specifically, I would like all documents, messages, notes and emails related to the RFP, including, but not limited to:
• Survey Documents
• Presentations
• Agreements
• Notes
• Documents
• RFPs
• Proposal Responses
• Work Product Produced Under RFP
• Rating Sheets for Responses
• Emails. Letters & Phone Messages between staff and other staff, staff and elected officials, and between staff and vendors and/or proposers.
• Contracts
• Other Internal Agency Documents
The dates covered by this request are January 26, 2022 through the present.
I ask for a determination on this request within four days of your receipt of it, as required by the Act, and an even prompter reply if you can make that determination without having to review the record[s] in question.
Hopefully you will be able to provide this information electronically; if not, please contact me with the expected amount for the copies and the easiest payment arrangement for you.
If you determine that any or all or the information qualifies for an exemption from disclosure, I ask you to note whether, as is normally the case under the Act, the exemption is discretionary, and if so whether it is necessary in this case to exercise your discretion to withhold the information.
If you determine that some but not all of the information is exempt from disclosure and that you intend to withhold it, I ask that you redact it for the time being and make the rest available as requested.
In any event, please provide a signed notification citing the legal authorities on which you rely if you determine that any or all of the information is exempt and will not be disclosed.
FOI #22-441 (12-14-22, 9:20 am) - Subject - Compensation data for faculty who teach/conduct research in atmospheric, oceanic, and related disciplines during 2022-2023 school year.
Name - Alexander Pasternack
Affiliation - Pearl Meyer in conjunction with the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR)
Pearl Meyer is working in conjunction with the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) to conduct a compensation survey of its members. To participate in the survey, an Excel worksheet is provided where a respondent reports base salary and internal job titles for individuals who are matched to a particular job code and discipline in the survey. Fields such as gender, ethnicity, and year of PhD are optional. The individuals of interest to the survey teach or conduct research in atmospheric, oceanic, and other related disciplines during the 2022-2023 school year. Postdoctoral students and Software Engineers/Programmers are also included in the survey. Additionally, the respondent completes an online compensation policies and practices questionnaire.
Participation in the survey is optional but highly encouraged. There is no fee associated with participating in the survey, as it has been sponsored by UCAR.
Michael Ayele (aka W)
Association for the Advancement of Civil Liberties (AACL)
FOI #22-440 (12-14-22, 3:06 am) - Subject - Jennifer Lawrence September 2022 Vogue Interview & #MeToo Movement
Name - Michael Ayele (aka W)
Affiliation - Association for the Advancement of Civil Liberties (AACL)
What I am requesting for prompt disclosure are records in your possession detailing your discussions about [1] Jennifer Lawrence as a Caucasian woman, who was born August 15th 1990 in the State of Kentucky; [2] Jennifer Lawrence as a woman, who’s known worldwide for being an actress; [3] Jennifer Lawrence as a woman, who has in the month of September 2022 agreed to answer 73 (seventy three) questions for the purpose of an interview with Vogue; [4] Vogue (as a news magazine), which has decided to broach the subject of the “most bizarre thing she’s read about herself” with Jennifer Lawrence; [5] Vogue (as a news magazine), which has for the purpose of their interview with Jennifer Lawrence (in the month of September 2022) questioned her about “the most bizarre thing she’s read about herself;” [6] Jennifer Lawrence as a woman, who has told Vogue (magazine) that the “most bizarre thing she’s read about herself” is that she “f***** Harvey Weinstein;” [7] Vogue (as a news magazine), which has decided not to follow-up Jennifer Lawrence answer to their question by asking her about the pervasive culture of sexual harassment/sexual assault and rape at the workplace (including but not limited to Hollywood); [8] Vogue (as a news magazine), which has decided not to follow-up Jennifer Lawrence answer to their question by asking her if she has had in the past sexual relations, which were not consensual; [9] Jennifer Lawrence as a woman, who has not answered any questions on the subject of the pervasive culture of sexual harassment/sexual assault and rape at the workplace (including but not limited to Hollywood) for the purpose of her interview with Vogue (magazine) (in the month of September 2022); [10] Jennifer Lawrence as a woman, who was not asked for the purpose of her interview with Vogue (magazine) (in the month of September 2022) whether or not she has had in the past sexual relations which were not consensual; [11] Jennifer Lawrence as a woman, who has firmly denied (on or around December 15th 2018) having any sexual relationship with Harvey Weinstein; [12] Jennifer Lawrence as a woman, who has previously won an Oscar for the Weinstein-produced film entitled: “Silver Linings Playbook;” [13] Jennifer Lawrence as a woman, who has in the month of August 2018 left CAA, “the agency that represented her for 10 years” because they were “making (…) decisions that should have been hers alone;” [14] Jennifer Lawrence as a woman, who has toward the end of October 2018 launched her production company called Excellent Cadaver; [15] Tarana Burke as a Black/African American woman, who’s the founder of the #MeToo movement; [16] Harvey Weinstein as a Caucasian Jewish man, who was on (or around) February 24th 2020 convicted of third-degree rape and first-degree criminal sexual act in the New York Supreme Court.