Digital advertising is everywhere on the Internet—think Google searches, social media, and even your go-to websites. If you’re online a lot, you might just tune them out.
However, new research indicates that this persistent presence can actually unearth personal details about users, their interests, and beliefs. Even more concerning, with AI technology, this data can be gathered without the need to click on ads.
It’s important to note that websites can’t stop companies from collecting and using this information.
The Study
Recent findings from researchers at UNSW Sydney revealed a surprising trend in the realm of online ads. The marketing materials appearing across various sites can inadvertently expose and monitor deeply personal values like political leanings, education history, and job status by analyzing the types of advertisements users encounter online.
To clarify, the ads themselves don’t gather specific data directly about users. Rather, the combination of ads presented can indicate personal traits. Here’s how it works:
The study focused on Facebook, analyzing about 435,000 ads shown to a small sample of 891 users. By tracking the ads delivered to each user, the researchers processed the correlation data through a large-scale language model, leading to four main insights:
- Personal characteristics about users could potentially be inferred without accessing their browsing history or device data; just a record of ad history is enough.
- A user profile might be created after just a brief browsing session, although the specifics on session length weren’t detailed.
- AI-driven matching of personal traits surpasses human capabilities.
- This AI process is significantly cheaper and faster—200 times more affordable and 50 times quicker than human analysis alone.
The alarming part of this study is that users don’t need to actively share any personal information; it doesn’t rely on cybersecurity vulnerabilities or exploits. Plus, no company can prevent data collection by the platforms that govern modern operating systems, web browsers, and websites.
Should I Be Concerned?
You might be asking yourself if there’s a reason for concern. Well, that likely depends on how your smart devices are set up.
The good news is that personal interests can’t be gauged without some sort of recorded data. Notes from UNSW Sydney suggest that things like Chrome extensions, Safari extensions, and Microsoft Edge add-ons commonly collect data. Having multiple extensions increases the chances of ad history being profiled. Avoiding extensions altogether can significantly minimize the likelihood of this data collection.
Not all extensions are harmful, but even benign tools can access the web pages you visit and their content.
Interestingly, ad blockers can also collect advertising data. While they do a good job at preventing ads from showing up, some sites may still collect information from the ads served for user profiling. Be cautious of ad blockers that claim to be free; if you’ve not paid for it, you may not have the protection you think you do.
Even without extensions, data brokers can still gather ample details about you without needing you to click on an ad. Websites are loaded with cookies—tiny data pieces that track your browsing habits. Merely visiting a product page can drop a cookie in your browser, revealing your preferences. This helps brokers to target you with ads you’re more likely to engage with, which is particularly alarming given the rise in social media scams.
How to Protect Yourself from Data Collection
Maintaining privacy online is getting harder, but you can take steps to fend off advertising data collection:
- Remove all browser extensions. This is a reliable way to block those tracking your data.
- Use a VPN. VPNs with built-in ad-blocking features can help; opt for RAM-based options with a no-logs policy, like ExpressVPN or NordVPN.
- Block cookies entirely. Some browsers allow you to restrict third-party cookies, although it can disrupt some websites.
- Clear your cookies regularly. Setting reminders to delete your browser history and cache can hinder long-term tracking.
- Use private browsing mode. While “private” or “incognito” doesn’t mask your web traffic from your ISP, it can help reduce cookies and tracking from brokers.
