Have you ever talked about a product, and then suddenly got an ad for it on your phone?
Weve all been there, and then skeptically looked over our shoulders for the advertiser lurking in the shadow.
You wouldnt be crazy for thinking that, but it is flat-out wrong.
Photo: Max Kegfire (Shutterstock)
Your phone is not listening to you.
It didnt help when a local advertising company falsely claimed, Its true.
Your devices are listening to you, in December.
It was a complete lie, that CMG Local Solutions took off their site after404 Mediacaught them red-handed.
However, this myth originated a long time ago.
The news segment ran on May 23rd, 2016, withan articlecoming out a few days earlier.
So, be careful what you say in the presence of your phone, said the 2016 article.
Facebook is not only watching but also listening to your cell phone.
The impact is still felt today, roughly eight years later.
The article quotes University of South Florida professor of communications, Kelli Burns.
However, Burns never actually said that Facebook was listening to you.
Watching, not listening, said Burns in the post.
And by watching I mean tracking.
Why in 2016?
That was around the time that Facebook started ramping up its targeted advertising.
In August 2016, The Washington Post reported that Facebooksuddenly offered 98 new personal data points to advertisers.
The data includes a persons age, gender, ethnicity, home value, and more.
Facebook has become atrillion-dollar company, largely due to its incredible targeted advertising.
Marketing companies love working with Facebook because it offers better data than any other platform in the world.
Theyd already abused your privacy more than any other company, so tapping your microphone didnt sound crazy.
Needless to say, the damage was done.
Why Is This Myth Pervasive?
You may be typing your thoughts into your phone more than you realize.
Did you ask Siri what the best hikes in Maui were?
Did you text search on Instagram for beautiful restaurants inside a volcano?
That information is sold to advertisers, and you probably tell your phone more than you think.
That information is tracked by advertisers, so they dont need your microphone.
However, researchers fromNortheastern University tackled this myth in 2018and found its a complete bust.
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