Good, as software engineers, machine learning researchers, etc. we have the real power here. Just stop working for these companies. There are jobs and good incomes to be had in other industries. Tell recruiters you are not interested in ad industry.
I left the ad industry because of data tracking
51–60 of 241 posts
Re: I left the ad industry because of data tracking
#52Hedge funds and intelligence agencies are fingerprinting all groups within our society by monitoring the responses of various target audiences to engineered stimuli. This comes in the form of observing the response to selective dissemination of content with a known effect on observers (you). A few years ago we heard about some outrage nobody did anything about when it became clear Facebook was manipulating reader emotional depression by showing some groups engineered posts. This has become a higher dimensional problem since then. It is no longer just "Facebook is making some groups of people sad." Now these orgs are reinforcing complex concepts in our minds subconsciously. One that comes to mind is a motif you will see in advertisements once you are more aware of it: strong healthy black man rescues white woman from a bumbling and pathetic white male. The whole point is to exploit fracture points in society and shift the overton window. Being able to establish behavioral patterns triggered by engineered information dissemination helps them control groups of people for their own benefit. It's a psychological intelligence operation on an unprecedented scale. Hedge funds stay ahead of new trends to invest in to maximize ROI. Intelligence agencies similarly identify threats to their power structures and steer the minds of the consumers of social media to further their agenda and steer the beliefs of any group in a controlled direction.
Re: I left the ad industry because of data tracking
#53What are they doing with all this data tracking because it sure isn't giving me relevant ads. In addition to the often noted situation where you buy something online and then get ads for that thing you already bought, I routinely see totally irrelevant ads and recommendations. I've been on Facebook since around 2003. I've had an Amazon account for even longer. Their ads and recommendations for me are terrible. Two re…
I am curious given that I have an Ad-blocker for most websites and am not on FB. How do you even see ads? Have FB et al found a workaround for ad-blockers?
I have uBlock origin and I still occasionally see ads in Facebook feeds.
Re: I left the ad industry because of data tracking
#54Me and a few other people have been pushing for ethical advertising. It doesn't have to be this way.
We meet monthly to give each other advice and help each other out. It's hard, it can take more time, but it's been a great experience, and I hope that this starts to become the norm over time.
Here's the group:
- Eric Berry with CodeFund (https://codefund.io)
- David Fischer with ReadTheDocs (https://docs.readthedocs.io/en/stable/advertising/ethical-ad...)
- Roberto Galoppini with Filezilla (https://filezilla-project.org/ethical_ads.php)
- Harley Hicks (Me) with RoutineHub (https://routinehub.co/ads)
Re: I left the ad industry because of data tracking
#55What are they doing with all this data tracking because it sure isn't giving me relevant ads. In addition to the often noted situation where you buy something online and then get ads for that thing you already bought, I routinely see totally irrelevant ads and recommendations. I've been on Facebook since around 2003. I've had an Amazon account for even longer. Their ads and recommendations for me are terrible. Two re…
> online and then get ads for that thing you already bought
Try getting ads for the thing you just sold and needed to copy the specs into an ad.
Re: I left the ad industry because of data tracking
#56What are they doing with all this data tracking because it sure isn't giving me relevant ads. In addition to the often noted situation where you buy something online and then get ads for that thing you already bought, I routinely see totally irrelevant ads and recommendations. I've been on Facebook since around 2003. I've had an Amazon account for even longer. Their ads and recommendations for me are terrible. Two re…
I am curious given that I have an Ad-blocker for most websites and am not on FB. How do you even see ads? Have FB et al found a workaround for ad-blockers?
Mobile? Hard to block in-app ads without a pi-hole.
I avoid apps where I can, but it’s not always avoidable/practical.
Or at work if you’re forbidden from installing “unapproved” software.
Re: I left the ad industry because of data tracking
#57Earlier quoted context omitted.
I am curious given that I have an Ad-blocker for most websites and am not on FB. How do you even see ads? Have FB et al found a workaround for ad-blockers?
Mobile? Hard to block in-app ads without a pi-hole. I avoid apps where I can, but it’s not always avoidable/practical. Or at work if you’re forbidden from installing “unapproved” software.
Good point on mobile. I use Adguard Pro on mobile after reading about it on HN. Yet to test Pi-hole. The work part is unavoidable, I guess.
Re: I left the ad industry because of data tracking
#58Hedge funds and intelligence agencies are fingerprinting all groups within our society by monitoring the responses of various target audiences to engineered stimuli. This comes in the form of observing the response to selective dissemination of content with a known effect on observers (you). A few years ago we heard about some outrage nobody did anything about when it became clear Facebook was manipulating reader emo…
Your post is also an attempt to “reinforce complex concepts in our minds subconsciously” isn’t it? The entire field of marketing is an attempt to influence people to engage in a particular behavior. Why single out hedge funds and intelligence agencies?
Re: I left the ad industry because of data tracking
#59What are they doing with all this data tracking because it sure isn't giving me relevant ads. In addition to the often noted situation where you buy something online and then get ads for that thing you already bought, I routinely see totally irrelevant ads and recommendations. I've been on Facebook since around 2003. I've had an Amazon account for even longer. Their ads and recommendations for me are terrible. Two re…
No but if you spend a bit of time you can finesse a system. I’ve been not using Facebook for a while but a few years ago I noticed they had “likes” and “see more of this” so I liked as much Cthulhu related ads as I could find and my ads pretty quickly looked like they were being served from carcosa.
I suspect that we will not ever see all this information actually give us better ads. The people in charge of this sort of stuff typically just want to get more clients so they are happy to inflate. The problem I see is that there is a whole lot of personal data being sent around all over the place to fly by night companies with no incentive to protect it.
Re: I left the ad industry because of data tracking
#60Me and a few other people have been pushing for ethical advertising. It doesn't have to be this way. We meet monthly to give each other advice and help each other out. It's hard, it can take more time, but it's been a great experience, and I hope that this starts to become the norm over time. Here's the group: - Eric Berry with CodeFund ( https://codefund.io ) - David Fischer with ReadTheDocs ( https://docs.readthedo…
> - Harley Hicks (Me) with RoutineHub (https://routinehub.co/ads)
Heads up: in Firefox Quantum 67, when I attempt to open your page in a new tab, it instantly closes again.