I overdrew from my bank account for the first time in years, and within fifteen minutes YouTube was showing me an ad for Chase Bank with “overdraft protection.”
Once I was in a conversation with my grandma about oil vs water in tuna cans, and an article popped into my news feed an hour later that was about oil vs water in tuna… I had never searched those terms.
I’ve since disabled the microphone on my phone when using the google app so it won’t listen in on me, but things like the bank overdraft turning into an ad just scares the crap out of me and I don’t think it’s the schizoaffective talking, I think I’m being rational here. Like the way these ads use your extracted information is scary especially if you already deal with paranoia due to sz.
It freaks me out, too! My phone is always listening. I can’t disable the Google Assistant, because that would disable my Android Auto, which I use every time I drive.
I’ll mention something really specific to my husband, like how I need some more black undies. And then! Whatay’know! Black undies are being advertised to me? Like, BLACK colored ones, specifically.
Something that really freaked me out, recently, was that I was watching a silly video of a 7 foot tall lady and a much shorter-than-her man. They are flirting and dancing, from afar, but when they get close enough, the music stops. The dude looks up at how tall she is and runs away. But he comes back with a ladder! And they continue to dance!
I loved it. I watched it a few times. But the weird part? I watched this video on Imgur, a meme app. And then THAT SAME NIGHT, Hubby and I opened YouTube on the TV. And there were 2 recommended videos of that tall lady! And it was my husband’s account that was signed into the TV! I definitely am not signed into his YT account on my phone. So, how did Google determine that the video I watched on Imgur was somehow the same household as Hubby’s YT?
I see cross recommendations all the time. Really weird.
John Oliver has a really good segment on HBO (and YouTube) about how companies get your info based on search history and medical records and this huge web of stuff they have access to. I’m just guessing you guys are in a few databases as each other’s spouse, and I’d even go so far as to say they could know you share the same address, and therefore recommend the ads to him.
Still even though it is possible it seems unlikely, but it’s hard to ignore right? It’s become worse in the last decade. There was this huge expensive ad on streaming services recently with tons of dancing people in bright clothes that was all about promoting cookies on facebook by telling everybody that targeted ads were a good thing. Like it helped the lady in the commercial find her new favorite restaurant or whatever because it knew what she would like. It just feels like 1984 to me
I had exactly that happen the other day. I was talking to my EMDR therapist about filing my taxes. By the time I got home, there was a text ad for a tax agent on my phone. I haven’t filed taxes in 7 years
I disabled my microphone too and a bunch of permissions on my phone as it was happening to me too.
They say your phone doesnt listen but thats a lie. You give apps permission to listen by accepted the microphone.
I could build a simple game app and request permission to access microphone, cameras, data scraping etc and you must accept it in order to use it. People do that too.
We are living in a world where people arnt yet aware enough on how to disable this stuff.
I disabled it all about a year ago when i replaced my phone and its never happened since.
I was discussing about purchasing contact lenses. Amazon showed me ad about solution used to clean those. Other time we were thinking of getting Crocs and I was shown ad about Crocs.
It is going to worsen paranoia for some. Heck even for normies.
They clearly agreed that it’s in all their best interest to share information, to maximize advertising dollars. It would be a paid service, with profit sharing I’m sure. Like referral fees
Welcome to the modern world. A while ago now my old cricket club spent all this money on newspaper ads to get new players. Not one came from it. We then did the new thing of advertising with targeted ads on facebook. I think the bill was cheaper and we got like 5 plus players…Anytime someone did a search on cricket in the neighbourhood around the club it would give them our details…
I was convinced at it’s effectiveness after that. Not good for paranoia but our details are passed around the world an aweful lot these days.
Same thing here. Yesterday I was concerned that I was really boring, then on some sitcom a guy said “You’re not boring, you just have a different idea on what’s fun.”
I get ads to go to nursing school. The funny thing is I already graduated nursing school. Also had ads to get my commercial pilots license. I read one article about being a pilot and now Im forever flooded with these ads.
Well that’s more of a worrying that the TV is talking to you because of misinterpreting coincidences. Targeted ads are very real despite how paranoid it sounds.
I’m glad to hear some good come of it @rogueone . I guess it does have its applications… I just wish I could opt out of it somehow.
It’s also a rampant propagation machine. Perpetuating viewpoints that are in those in powers best interest, while discouraging Direct examination or questioning. It verges on mind control, or certainly an unethical level of influence on one’s thoughts and actions
In news, there always used to be a renegade. A Maverick who went against the grain, and strove to find the truth behind the shadows. There’s no place for someone like that in mainstream media anymore. Sad to say. Now the news is merely reported, not questioned or explored
That brings us to various YouTube channels for our sources. I have my favorites as well
