DoubleClick is the name of a group of cookies, used by the company DoubleClick. It mainly works with tracking cookies in order to record information, connected to online advertisements. DoubleClick tries to follow the habits of ads viewers and assist Google. Despite the fact that DoubleClick is mainly used for marketing purposes, many anti-virus vendors detect these tracking cookies as a low-risk threat due to privacy issues. Furthermore, sometimes DoubleClick tracking cookies have been exploited by cyber criminals.
DoubleClick tracking cookies are used in a number of websites. They enter computers as a result of clicking on advertisements, which are not necessarily malicious. Their automatic download cannot be spotted by the user. This is what makes their distribution easy, and this is also the reason why hackers might want to exploit them.
After its installation, a DoubleClick tracking cookie starts following the browsing behavior of the user. It is mainly interested in activities, related with advertisements. Therefor, its primary task is to keep track of the advertisement viewed by the user when visiting different webpages. What is more, these cookies are also capable of tracking the IP address of the user. DoubleClick does not take up a lot of memory and does not slow down the PC performance. However, there is no way to block its IP-tracking function. It is mainly dangerous due to the fact that it poses a threat to the privacy of the user, and this makes security researchers recommend removing DoubleClick.
The greatest trouble with DoubleClick cookies is that they sometimes become part of cyber criminals’ malicious plans. Of course, this happens without Google’s consent and even knowledge, and, in most cases, such attacks are blocked without delay. However, the risk of hackers, exploiting DoubleClick for the installation of all kinds of malware pieces still exists. Hence, it is highly advisable that you disable your cookies – especially the ones related to websites that you do not really trust.
Removing cookies is not a hard task, especially if you have a reliable anti-virus program. Running full, regular scans with it will help you disable the unwanted cookies fast and easy. Please note, that in order to avoid the download of DoubleClick again and again (by visiting DoubleClick-related websites) you should block them via your security settings. Otherwise, every time you visit a website, which includes DoubleClick, you will re-download the cookies without being aware of it. Once you remove the unwanted cookies, you can disable cookies as a whole – it is an option that almost all browsers offer, to prevent their future download.
Many users prefer to block advertisements as a way to prevent further cookie downloads, but this does not mean your computer does not need other security measures to be taken, as well, in order to stay away not only from cookies, but also from all kinds of malware pieces, easily spread online. Though DoubleClick is regarded as a low-risk threat, if you would like to keep your privacy as unviolated as possible, start a scan with your genuine AV tool and remove the tracking cookies now.
*SpyHunter’s free scanner is only for malware detection. If SpyHunter detects malware on your PC, you will need to purchase SpyHunter’s malware suite to remove the malware threats.
