Zynga (Mafia Wars) Controversial 3rd party spyware cookies putting your security at risk

(excerpt from Zynga forums) “Zynga (the company that develops Mafia Wars) does not give a rats a** after injecting a spyware cookie into the game. How can a company screw up your security for personal monetary gains!?”. Below are excerpts from a thread from Reddit where users discuss how they feel about Zynga’s code of ethic and business practices.  (Direct link to thread here)

(User) i_hate_zynga- Zynga  posted an update for Mafia Wars on Facebook. In order to enjoy the game, one will have to allow “third party cookies”. This data mining cookie is none other than Iesnare (http://mafiawars.wikia.com/wiki/Iesnare).

(User) motherfuckinganon-  it is completely irresponsible for a representative of zynga to encourage users to enable 3rd party cookies. That this would be required is complete software engineering fail. Zynga as a whole is a decent company and has atleast attempted to get their shit together recently. It appears they lack the engineering aptitude to set cookies from the correct domain. (Reddit.com)

When confronted, the game developers try to  justify their stance. Meanwhile  people who have posted this specific issue on the official game forum find their posts were deleted and/or edited appropriately.

More on the topic from Reddit.com forum.

(User) Fernando_x A- spyware cookie is a cookie that crosses the line from being helpful (like remembering you between sessions) to being intrusive (like tracking your websurfing habits). Third party cookies like iesnare do that. Normally a cookie is only visible by the web that created it, but to spy they must be shared with third party webs. Enabling those cookies is a serious security risk. – There are many ways to make money in internet. There are also illegitimate ways.

(User) Fernando_x- Allowing third party cookies is a security (privacy) problem. Although most antispyware programs will consider them as a minor threat, will recomend to delete them. – Next time you wonder how do advertisers know you like sports, or online games, or dating… do remember that you are being watched.

(User) Fernando_x- Perhaps they are not using that cookie to track your internet movements, but “if you want to play our game, you must expose yourself to be spied by others” is a real problem.

(User) slipkid- Zynga as a whole is a decent company and has atleast attempted to get their shit together recently. Citation needed.