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I now assume that all ads on Apple news are scams

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Re: I now assume that all ads on Apple news are scams

#441

Post by maxkfranz »

skygazer wrote: post #266
mikestew wrote: post #219

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’ve tried blocking the ads with a pi-hole, to no avail. I suspect the ads come from the same servers that the articles do. I can’t find obvious ad servers in the query logs. If anyone has a hint on blocking Apple News ads at DNS, I’d love to hear it.

1Blocker, with their in-app tracker blocking turned on, will block Apple News ads on iOS/iPadOS and will also block ads in Google News and free to play games. I guess you can’t block tracking without also blocking the ads. It installs a local VPN profile that blocks connections to hosts typically blocked with dns based ad blockers. They’ve increasingly hidden the feature in the app, for some reason.

How is it on battery life to run the VPN continuously?

Re: I now assume that all ads on Apple news are scams

#444

Post by port11 »

WarmWash wrote: post #113
elashri wrote: post #68

We should assume that all ads in general are scams. The noise to signal ratio is too large to care. Word of mouth and maybe trusted communities like HN is the only way to reliably discover new things.

Generally if all the ads you see are scammy, it means you probably are using some form of tracking/privacy protection. When an ad network has a strong profile on you, legitimate companies pay good money for those ad slots. When they don't really know who you are, only bottom feeders bid on the ad slots you see. In a way, it almost acts as retribution for not submitting to the anti-privacy machine.

Non-personalised ads might indeed be more scammy, but it should be the ad network’s responsibility to vet and monitor their advertisers. (Imagine Don Draper making ads for penis enlargement companies.)

Let’s also not pretend that personalised advertising is that great. Our Tizen runs the crappiest ads (can’t opt out in some cases). And I just have to take a look at my partner’s phone to see what personalised means, and which advertisers can _afford_ to get placement. (No, she doesn’t need another of the last 10 things we’ve purchased.)

Re: I now assume that all ads on Apple news are scams

#445

Post by carleton »

hu3 wrote: post #436
einr wrote: post #371

Earlier quoted context omitted.

iOS has had support for ad blockers since 2015. I never ever see ads on iOS Safari and have not for many years.

What do you suggest I setup for my wife's iPhone? And does it block ads on Apple News?

uBlock Origin Lite for Safari

To block ads on Apple News you need to block iadsdk.apple.com in DNS. E.g., NextDNS

Re: I now assume that all ads on Apple news are scams

#446

Post by skygazer »

maxkfranz wrote: post #441
skygazer wrote: post #266

Earlier quoted context omitted.

1Blocker, with their in-app tracker blocking turned on, will block Apple News ads on iOS/iPadOS and will also block ads in Google News and free to play games. I guess you can’t block tracking without also blocking the ads. It installs a local VPN profile that blocks connections to hosts typically blocked with dns based ad blockers. They’ve increasingly hidden the feature in the app, for some reason.

How is it on battery life to run the VPN continuously?

I haven’t noticed it consume any additional battery. It doesn’t actually connect to a vpn server, or reencrypt traffic. It’s just a hack to deny select connections. I often do end up turning it off after a few days, though, because some times I need tracking redirects to work, and I’m too lazy to always whitelist.

Re: I now assume that all ads on Apple news are scams

#447

Post by pbasista »

elashri wrote: post #68

We should assume that all ads in general are scams. The noise to signal ratio is too large to care. Word of mouth and maybe trusted communities like HN is the only way to reliably discover new things.

I think that the most fundamental issue with ads and more generally with provider-curated content is that they represent what the advertiser or the provider wants. Not what you want.

Even if the ads are heavily personalized, the advertiser is still the one who is trying to push an idea onto you. Similarly, even if your social media account has a lot of personal information on you, the provider is still the one who is selecting which content will appear in you "feed".

I believe that these practices make people less self-aware of what they actually want. Because they mostly respond to suggestions. They do much less research into what is possible. They just say yes or no to the things they see in their ads or in their "feed". While becoming more and more distant from the reality that is happening outside the provider-managed ads or "feeds".

I think that a safe way out of this is to ignore ads and "feeds" completely. And actively search for the things or content you want. Curate your interests in a way you like. Not in a way advertisers or providers want.

Re: I now assume that all ads on Apple news are scams

#448

Post by tonyedgecombe »

manuelabeledo wrote: post #421
eek2121 wrote: post #407

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Something like 70% of the comments I've seen on this thread show that either: 1) The user has never owned an Apple Device in their life. 2) They are trolling super hard. There are complaints to be had that I definitely agree with, however, I see a TON of fiction for every single legitimate complaint. No, not an Apple employee, shareholder, etc. (I am broke and dependent on my wife because I am disabled lol)

I've been an Apple One subscriber for over three years now. For the past few months, as soon as you open the TV+ app, a Peacock ad starts playing really loud.

I’m wondering what platform you are using TV+ on.
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