Tried turning off adblock for a week on my phone and got served a targeted ad for a mastectomy bra

I'm a guy with no history of breast cancer or anything related. Did a little digging and found out it's because my wife searched something on our shared wifi. Creepy how they don't even need your device to know your business. Anyone else have stories about the algorithm getting it hilariously wrong based on household data?

3 comments

3 Comments

hugos4614d ago

jamie_adams that bankruptcy lawyer thing is brutal, the algorithm basically decided your financial life was over just because your roommate looked at student loans. I swear if my roommate ever Googles something about suspicious rashes or weird insurance claims, I'm gonna start getting ads for a mobile morgue or something. Public wifi is terrifying, last time I used one at a library I got bombarded with ads for cheap wedding venues and I'm not even dating anyone. The algorithm just assumes the worst about everyone sharing an IP address and then doubles down on it.

jamie_adams14d ago

Haha wow that's nuts. I once got served ads for a bankruptcy lawyer after my roommate used my PC to look up how to deal with student loans. I'm sitting there like "dude I literally just bought a pizza, I'm fine." The algorithm really thinks everyone sharing an IP is the same person or something. It's like they don't understand that people have roommates or families or visit friends. Makes you wonder what kind of weird stuff happens when you use public wifi at a coffee shop.

jana88114d ago

Wait, does that mean if I ever borrow someone's laptop to look up something embarrassing, they're gonna get ads for it too... that's basically a nightmare scenario right there. I'd be too scared to even google "how to get gum out of my hair" on a friend's device. Honestly at this rate I'm surprised the algorithm hasn't tried to sell me divorce papers after I watched a single video about weird relationships on animal planet. It's like they've got no chill at all, just assuming the worst about everyone who shares a wifi connection.