number of websites stored cookies keeps changing

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number of websites stored cookies keeps changing

In Safari Preferences, Security tab, there is a summary of the number of websites with stored cookies on my computer. This is normally constant, but now keeps flicking between two numbers, one about 1000, another about 300. When I click on the Details button, the site names displayed also appears to be flicking between two sets of names every second or two. If I click on an address to highlight it, the whole set of names is replaced by the other set before I can click the Remove button, and then the original set comes back, but with the one I originally highlighted no longer highlighted. Does anyone know how I can stabilise this? Tried simply quitting Safari and also re-starting the computer.

MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.7.5)

Posted on Jul 13, 2015 8:59 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

Carolyn Samit

Level 10

165,615 points

Jul 13, 2015 11:23 AM in response to Alan Tunnacliffe

Open the Finder.

From the Finder menu bar click Go > Go to Folder

Type or copy paste the following:

~/Library/Cookies

Move all the files from the Cookeis folder to the Trash.

Restart your Mac, launch Safari.

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Answer 2

Mar 11, 2016 2:19 AM in response to Alan Tunnacliffe

I realize this post has been resolved, but I have run across this and I have found a way to make it stop instead of deleting all of the cookies.

While you're in preferences>privacy> select "always block" and the number of cookies will stay at the highest number.

I'm working on what's actually causing it, and will post an update. It's only occurring on one of 5 workstations that are all synced together with the same iCloud account.

At least this keeps it from changing so now i can try individual cookies to determine which one might be causing the problem.

UPDATE: This is what worked for me. Once I got them to stop changing, I scrolled through and found "sniper.ru". I then did a search within the cookie window for any ".ru" and deleted them all. I quit safari and relaunched. I went back to preferences>privacy> and changed from "always block" to any other setting and it stayed the same! I then checked all my other workstations that were not having this problem and none of them had any ".ru" cookies.

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