Tech History: From Convenience to Controversy - The Story of Cookies

In the digital world, "cookies" aren’t baked — they’re tracked. Invented in 1994 by a programmer named Lou Montulli while working at Netscape Communications, cookies were originally designed to make websites "remember" users — like items in a shopping cart or login sessions.

Before cookies, websites were basically goldfish: every time you refreshed or visited a new page, they forgot who you were. Cookies changed that by storing small text files on your browser, helping websites deliver a more personalized experience.

At first, cookies were a silent partner in your web experience. But as advertisers realized they could use cookies to track user behavior across multiple sites, privacy concerns began to rise. This led to regulations like the EU’s GDPR and those infamous “Accept All Cookies” pop-ups you see today.

Love them or loathe them, cookies helped build the modern internet — one crumb at a time.