Have you ever been talking to your friend about a certain brand and then you open your Instagram and BAM, there’s an advertisement for that brand?! Well this has happened to me on more than one occasion and frankly it’s a little bit scary!
And apparently I’m not alone!
Sam Nichols put this to the test in an experiment (you can read the full article here). Twice a day for 5 days, he vocalised that he is considering going to university and literally overnight, the advertisements he received on Facebook were about starting university mid semester. :O (Coincidence? I think not.)
Although, Facebook (who also owns Instagram) has repeatedly said that the applications only use the microphone when specific actions are undertaken (such as a voice call or using the camera to record a video) and denied that they are using users microphone without permission to target advertisements. However, it’s extremely difficult to believe all these experiences are just coincidental. (You can read Facebooks statement here).
If this is true, this means brands will target users who speak about their brand by showing them advertisements relating to their speech. This works particularly well for fast food companies, speaking from personal experience of course! (KFC got the better of me too many times)
So, this raises questions about our privacy, do we even have any privacy? With technology becoming so advanced so rapidly, and by using these technologies, are we almost asking for it by using and owning devices that enable voice recording/listening? For example using Siri, Bixby, Okay Google and Google Home/Alexa which are voice activated technologies… are they always listening? or are they only listening when they’re activated like they say they are? Who knows.
What do you think? Have you ever had an experience where you thought Facebook was listening to your conversation? Is it wrong?
Talking Tech with Bec 