cookiea

Cookiea is an open-source software library and toolkit for managing HTTP cookies and session data in web applications. It provides a consistent API for creating, parsing, validating, signing, and encrypting cookies, with emphasis on security and privacy. The library supports common cookie attributes such as Secure, HttpOnly, and SameSite, and offers utilities to enforce policy compliance and user consent.

Cookiea consists of a core engine that handles cookie encoding/decoding and validation, a policy module that defines rules for cookies in different contexts, and adapters that integrate with popular web frameworks. It can store session data in memory or delegate persistence to external stores, such as databases or caches. The library also includes a command-line interface and a minimal help system for managing cookie policies and audits.

In usage, cookiea is intended for developers who need consistent cookie handling across platforms and languages, to simplify compliance with privacy laws and improve security posture. It is designed to be pluggable, enabling adoption in existing stacks without large rewrites. The project is community-maintained with contributions from volunteers and organizations; maintainers emphasize code quality, documentation, and security audits.

Criticism of cookiea, when discussed, centers on its learning curve for new users and potential performance considerations in highly dynamic applications. Proponents argue that standardized cookie handling reduces bugs, improves security, and aids regulatory compliance. See also HTTP cookie, SameSite attribute, web security, and privacy policy.