The Authentication Failure
Google Chrome is actively phasing out support for third-party cookies across the entire web in an effort to improve user privacy and prevent advertisers from tracking you across different websites. By default, Chrome may now automatically block these cookies. While this sounds like a massive privacy win, many older enterprise web applications, school portals, and single-sign-on (SSO) authentication systems completely break without them. If you try to log into a portal and are immediately thrown back to the login screen, or if an embedded payment gateway refuses to load, Chrome’s automatic cookie blocking is likely the culprit.
How to Re-Enable Third-Party Cookies Globally
If you rely on legacy web applications and need absolute compatibility over privacy, you can force Chrome to accept all cookies, just like it did in the old days.
1. Open Google Chrome.
2. Click the three vertical dots in the top-right corner of the window.
3. Select Settings.
4. In the left-hand sidebar, click on Privacy and security.
5. In the main pane, click on Third-party cookies.
6. Look under the “Default behavior” section.
7. Select the radio button labelled Allow third-party cookies.
How to Allow Third-Party Cookies for a Specific Site
Allowing all third-party cookies globally exposes you to intense advertising tracking. The vastly superior approach is to keep the global block active, but create a specific exception for the one broken website (like your university portal).
1. Navigate to the website that is broken (e.g., your university SSO page).
2. Look at the right side of the URL address bar. You will likely see an icon that looks like a small eye with a slash through it.
3. Click that eye icon.
4. A small dialog box will appear explaining that third-party cookies are blocked.
5. Click the toggle switch next to Third-party cookies to turn it on for this site only.
6. Click the blue Reload button that appears to refresh the page.
The website will now function perfectly, while the rest of the web remains blocked from tracking you.