this post was submitted on 27 Aug 2023
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You know these algorithms are designed for predictive advertisement based off your previous activity. What is likely going on is this:
10,000 users who searched these terms also decided to search or want this “thing” next.
“Woah, it’s reading my mind! How did it know I was thinking about that?!”
It’s funny, nobody pays attention when the algorithm guesses wrong, we only notice it when it’s freakishly accurate.
Except when it's YouTube recommendations, then they only pay attention when it's wrong and not when it's right.
What, you don’t want right wing misinformation shoved down your throat constantly despite reporting it every time you see it?
As if YouTube would ever get it right.
In that case it's never right. 😑
Certain products use algorithms that predict you're going to stop using it before you're even aware. This can trigger things to sent you emails, etc with some perk.
And that makes it better?
No, but confirmation bias is a real thing.
Bingo. This one gets it.
Absolutely, but understanding that doesn't make it any less creepy.
You can fight this you know. There are a lot of great YouTube video tutorials by MentalOutlaw that will help you tighten down your security settings and make it more difficult to identify and track you across the internet.
Does this come at a high cost of convenience? Absolutely. Most of my security settings break websites by default since I restrict all 3rd party apps and JavaScript. It takes me a good couple minutes to play around and see what is causing the issue.
If I can’t figure out how read your site without handing over a bunch of access, I move to the 2nd or 3rd site that usually gives me what I want without changing any settings at all.
Understanding what is real is the first step to controlling what controls you
No, it helps you understand what it actually is so you can think of solutions based on information instead of fear.