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Everyone knows your location: tracking myself down through in-app ads

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Re: Everyone knows your location: tracking myself down through in-app ads

#11
post #6

There are quite a few interesting tracking flows out there. My rent is paid through a company called Bilt. I discovered that when I shop at Walgreens now, Bilt sends me an email containing the full receipt of what I bought like so: > Hey [inahga], > > You shopped at Walgreens on 12/1/24 and earned Bilt Points with your > Neighborhood Pharmacy benefit. > > Items eligible for rewards > TOSTITOS HINT OF LIME RSTC 11OZ >…

Hopefully exclude? By whom? At some point, somebody has to decide it was sensitive, by what standards? Does Bilt decide to not use it after they were already sold the data? Does the aggregator after already been sold it by the harvesting seller? Does the harvesting app reduce the appeal of their data by deliberately excluding the data? Does the harvesting app care to spend the money on doing that?

Re: Everyone knows your location: tracking myself down through in-app ads

#13
post #7
post #2

Shame on all of the people working on those systems. Legit companies trying to make the world better struggle to find competent people.

Ugh. Eye roll on the whole “make the world better”. So few SV products remotely make the world better. The purpose of the vast majority is to make money at all costs. I also disagree with what most people claim is making the world better. All in all, I think social media is a net negative for the world for any good that might be found. Every SV thing after that is just chasing the recketship to the moon dream.

> So few SV products remotely make the world better

Because devs have to eat in order to survive?

Re: Everyone knows your location: tracking myself down through in-app ads

#15
post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ugh. Eye roll on the whole “make the world better”. So few SV products remotely make the world better. The purpose of the vast majority is to make money at all costs. I also disagree with what most people claim is making the world better. All in all, I think social media is a net negative for the world for any good that might be found. Every SV thing after that is just chasing the recketship to the moon dream.

> So few SV products remotely make the world better Because devs have to eat in order to survive?

You don't need to work on adtech or work at Meta to survive. Don't pretend that it has nothing to do with the lavish salaries.

Re: Everyone knows your location: tracking myself down through in-app ads

#17
post #7
post #2

Shame on all of the people working on those systems. Legit companies trying to make the world better struggle to find competent people.

Ugh. Eye roll on the whole “make the world better”. So few SV products remotely make the world better. The purpose of the vast majority is to make money at all costs. I also disagree with what most people claim is making the world better. All in all, I think social media is a net negative for the world for any good that might be found. Every SV thing after that is just chasing the recketship to the moon dream.

I believe this was parodied multiple times in season 1 of Silicon Valley.

Re: Everyone knows your location: tracking myself down through in-app ads

#19

Related? NSA Warns iPhone and Android Users–Disable Location Tracking https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42713536 Hackers Claim Breach of Location Data Giant, Threaten to Leak Data https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42627336

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