Computing question. ... Brendan ?

[VicS]

Today I find I am logged out of all the forums etc that I use regularly and normally remain logged into.

Also the membership details that I don't normally have to enter for on line banking and credit card site have gone AWOL.

Has some evil gremlin got in past McAfee or is there likely to be a more innocent explanation. I get logged out of individual sites very occassionally but this is the first time it has happened to all of them at once.

 

[BrendanS]

Sounds like all your cookies have gone, as it is usually cookies that store the login information for most sites.

 

[VicS]

I thought that was what had happened.
I've looged back in to most of them (not the banking ones as I'll have to look up the details for those). Shut down completely for a few minutes before restarting. All seems well, for now at any rate.
Any idea what might have caused it?
I should have said Vista home basic and IE7

 

[BrendanS]

Unless you've run some sort of clean up utility, no idea I'm afraid, just one of those things

 

[GeorgeLlewellin]

If you right clicked on the C: drive and under “Properties” clicked on “Disk Cleanup” this would have done it.

 

[VicS]

McAfee did a scheduled (weekly) scan last night and removed a couple of dozen or so "Potentially unwanted" cookies but none that I recognize as associated with any of the sites affected.

 

[BrendanS]

It may have corrupted your cookie folder while it was removing the unwanted cookies

 

[[448]]

I think it is a BIG mistake to keep Bank and Credit card login details permanently on the computer, especially a laptop.
I get Firefox to delete all cookies after every session, but keep login details for forums etc.
Cheers, Dave

 

[TheoSr]

This will not solve your present problems, but will help if it happens again.

http://keepass.info/

Install it on a USB stick and it runs from the stick so no password-file on your PC/Laptop.

Good luck,
Theo

 

[VicS]

[ QUOTE ]
I think it is a BIG mistake to keep Bank and Credit card login details permanently on the computer, especially a laptop.

[/ QUOTE ] They are just my name and the membership number, not the passwords/ pass-codes, memorable words etc etc , the things in fact that the bank websites offer the option to store on the computer. It's not a laptop.

[ QUOTE ]
This will not solve your present problems, but will help if it happens again.

[/ QUOTE ] It has not caused any problems just a minor irritation and the worry that some thing nasty might have got in there and started deleting things. Thanks for the link I'll look into that.

SWMBO logged in (as a separate user) this morning and accessed one of her accounts normally. So what ever caused it has not affected her cookie file it would seem.