Any videos of this in action?
Audible feedback on just how much your browsing feeds into Google
51–60 of 210 posts
Re: Audible feedback on just how much your browsing feeds into Google
#52Earlier quoted context omitted.
This a bit orthogonal so I put it in a separate comment, but let me be even more aggressive and do a bit of offense: I've read a lot of the "pro privacy/anti tracking" arguments over the years, and (outside of a few exceptions) they almost always hinge upon some aesthetic dislike for companies having this information, rather than having any material justification for why it's harmful. But attacking ads and ad trackin…
So let me bring up some of the exceptions I can think of. Recently, a woman got an abortion and part of what the prosecution used against her was data collected from facebook. With google's tracking, is it not unlikely that a government body could subpoena them for search histories? (which, they do already) to look for questions like "has this individual asked about abortions recently?" Perhaps you view that as moral…
Are you sure the desire not to be imprisoned or killed isn't aesthetic?
Re: Audible feedback on just how much your browsing feeds into Google
#53Would've probably piqued more interest if it were a browser plug-in.
This would make a great plugin, and could be expanded to other companies: Your computer makes a noise when it tells Google what you're doing. It makes another noise when it tells Facebook what you're doing.
Re: Audible feedback on just how much your browsing feeds into Google
#54as if I wasn't already paranoid enough... this makes me more so... I was afraid it was going to read me what google learns, but hearing the pops makes me realize just how much I'm producing for Google every second.
Re: Audible feedback on just how much your browsing feeds into Google
#55A common explanation I get from people with poor digital hygiene is that they do not see how it is affecting them. Making the imperceptible perceptible is a great concept for more innovations. I have sent the kids in my house logs for their devices from the DNS blocker I have running on our network, but it was too much for them to digest. Perhaps I should work on a visualization tool of all the data that shows impact…
>they do not see how it is affecting them I'm an adult who understands tracking tech and in particular Google's level of tracking quite well (I used to work on AdWords), and I'm one of these people -- tracking doesn't seem to negatively impact my quality of life at all but it keeps the many free services I value greatly running. Visual or audio representations of the amount of data they're collecting are hardly an ar…
The visualization is useful for those who already understand how it harms them and society. If someone likes to be watched and controlled, this type of visualization is not of much value.
Re: Audible feedback on just how much your browsing feeds into Google
#56Earlier quoted context omitted.
This a bit orthogonal so I put it in a separate comment, but let me be even more aggressive and do a bit of offense: I've read a lot of the "pro privacy/anti tracking" arguments over the years, and (outside of a few exceptions) they almost always hinge upon some aesthetic dislike for companies having this information, rather than having any material justification for why it's harmful. But attacking ads and ad trackin…
So let me bring up some of the exceptions I can think of. Recently, a woman got an abortion and part of what the prosecution used against her was data collected from facebook. With google's tracking, is it not unlikely that a government body could subpoena them for search histories? (which, they do already) to look for questions like "has this individual asked about abortions recently?" Perhaps you view that as moral…
At an object level, "not having XYZ actions occur from the government" is a problem with the government, not any tech company. You almost certainly live in a western style democracy, and so you possess mechanisms to modify the government behavior (if you don't, I suggest moving); it's absurd to complain about tech companies when you're actually upset with the government. This does doubly so when the primary threat to the ads tracking business model in the West is government legislation produced by elected representatives.
At a meta level, this is just a list of grievances. You've not suggested a workable alternative business model that, on balance, provides more net good. It's possible that all your complaints about tracking ads are legitimate and it's still the best business model for providing the sort of massively positive societal value Google search provides.
Re: Audible feedback on just how much your browsing feeds into Google
#57Earlier quoted context omitted.
So let me bring up some of the exceptions I can think of. Recently, a woman got an abortion and part of what the prosecution used against her was data collected from facebook. With google's tracking, is it not unlikely that a government body could subpoena them for search histories? (which, they do already) to look for questions like "has this individual asked about abortions recently?" Perhaps you view that as moral…
Are you sure the desire not to be imprisoned or killed isn't aesthetic?
So truuuuu, tech companies are imprisoning people or killing them, not governments.
Re: Audible feedback on just how much your browsing feeds into Google
#58On OSX you can install this to get audio: https://github.com/espeak-ng/pcaudiolib
Re: Audible feedback on just how much your browsing feeds into Google
#59I consider myself very privacy conscious, bordering on the paranoid. I use FOSS as much as possible, avoid FAANG, and remove surveillance from my life wherever I can. This tool shocked me. It exposes in a visceral way just how prevalent Google is, and does a better job getting that idea across than every video, article, post or comment I've consumed on the topic.
As a counter point (and you're not wrong, this is just my take)...
I consider myself privacy and security and convenience conscious, not at all paranoid yet as I don't expect I have aroused the interest of a State power (touch wood). I use what most people use and prefer less friction over philosophically and/or ethically pure services. This tool made me shrug. Sure, yea, that's not an unexpected frequency, I guess. I haven't personally seen any disaster come from data shared to be sold or used for advertising. Mostly all I get advertized are things I've already bought (rolls eyes) or things I've said out loud (scowls). The hit rate for something I've been "told" to buy is like 0.001% The last hit was Dan Ariely's IRRATIONAL Game. Pretty cool, no? https://irrationalgame.com/
Re: Audible feedback on just how much your browsing feeds into Google
#60Earlier quoted context omitted.
Same here when it comes to how it affects me personally, but I can see how it affects society as a whole (or how it could affect kids) so easily. Most people don't have an understanding about how their browsing is a part of a positive feedback loop that pushes them into echo chambers on Facebook, Youtube, TikTok, etc. It's a consequence of relying on advertising as a revenue generator for these services. Teaching you…
It's valid to point out to children that platforms have an incentive to suck them in and keep them on there, but this has nothing to do with ads. Netflix is a paid subscription service that does not show you ads, yet they have just as strong of an incentive to keep you on their platform as much as possible so you don't go to a competitor. This is simply the nature of online services -- a better online service keeps y…
The same is true of all media really, including books (e.g. the various tactics used by the authors of novels to keep the reader turning the next page). It's just that online media is more potent and compelling to most people so the effect is more noticeable.