What is the khaos cookie?
This cookie is used by Magnite to store a unique user identifier for programmatic ad targeting and tracking campaign performance.
Table of Contents
About the khaos cookie
| Vendor | Magnite |
|---|---|
| Cookie Domain | rubiconproject.com |
| Category Category The functional category of the technology, such as Web Analytics or Social Media. Learn more | Advertising & Paid Media |
| Consent Category Consent Category The consent category this cookie most commonly falls under across sites we scan, normalized into four standard categories. Learn more | Targeting & Advertising |
| Prevalence | Very Common |
| Popularity Popularity Popularity is calculated from our dataset of 4.5B+ cookies analyzed across hundreds of millions of web pages. Learn more | Found on 22.1% of scanned pages |
| Expiration Type | Timestamp |
| Expiration Duration | 30 days |
| Party Type Party Type Whether the cookie is first-party or third-party. Learn more | 3rd-Party |
| Risk Level Risk Level Rates how sensitive the data stored by this cookie is (High, Medium, or Low) based on data classification and distribution. Learn more | High |
| Vendor Privacy Policy | https://www.magnite.com/legal/advertising-platform-privacy-policy/ |
| Vendor Website | https://www.magnite.com |
What is the purpose of the khaos cookie?
The khaos cookie is a third-party tracking identifier set by Magnite (formerly Rubicon Project, which rebranded to Magnite in 2020 following its merger with Telaria). Magnite's own User Choice Portal documents khaos (set from the rubiconproject.com domain) as a "Digital Identifier" processed by its advertising technology. It operates across the Magnite advertising technology platform to recognize a user's browser or device, enabling cross-domain identity resolution and the delivery of targeted advertisements. The cookie stores a pseudonymized identifier used to optimize ad serving on sites within the programmatic ad network. Additionally, it helps track advertising campaign performance and facilitates real-time bidding by syncing user IDs across demand-side and supply-side platforms via cookie-syncing.
What are the Privacy Risks of the khaos cookie?
Risk Level: High
The cookie is used for cross-site behavioral tracking and programmatic ad targeting. It stores a persistent identifier that enables third parties to build user profiles based on browsing history and ad interactions across multiple independent websites. Because this data is frequently shared with and synced across other advertising platforms (demand-side and supply-side) through cookie-syncing, it poses a significant privacy risk and is typically classified as a targeting/advertising cookie requiring user consent under privacy regulations like GDPR.
How to Remove the khaos cookie from a Website
To remove this cookie, site administrators must locate and disable the Magnite (or Rubicon Project) tags, scripts, or pixels deployed on their website. This may involve removing the vendor integration entirely from the site's source code or tag management system (e.g., Google Tag Manager). Alternatively, administrators can reconfigure their ad server or header bidding wrapper (such as Prebid.js) to pause or remove the Rubicon Project bidder, which will prevent the associated cookies from firing. If the site relies on Magnite as its sell-side/exchange partner, the cookie cannot be removed without removing or disabling that vendor integration.