Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Flip

1 2 3 4 5

Original poster

To think FB is bugging my phone?!

113 replies

WaitingForSunday17 · 21/04/2018 19:34

I spoke with my mum on the phone about something extremely specific. An extremely specific item that you wouldn't normally need.
Ten minutes later it's popped up in my FB ads. How? How is this possible. The specific product and shop my mum mentioned on the phone. It cannot be coincidence.
I'm freaked out. I haven't googled it all and my mum is in her house at a different IP address. She hasn't googled it at my house either.

OP posts:

Original poster

WaitingForSunday17 · 21/04/2018 21:57

No never. I've used my phone on their wifi but I've never used any of their devices to log in, only my own.

OP posts:

AnchorDownDeepBreath · 21/04/2018 22:03

I promise that is how it works.

--There's no way of saying that I work there three days a week without sounding like a knob; but I'll add it here for reassurance and get this deleted later...

Voice0fReason · 21/04/2018 23:53

Or it's an advert that's been around for a while that you haven't noticed before because it hasn't been relevant to you. Your mum has seen it so she is aware of the product. After your conversation, you suddenly notice the advert.

You can switch off the targetted ads on Facebook if you are really that worried. You still get adverts but they are not based on your search history.

bbpp · 22/04/2018 00:10

It DOES listen. That'd a fact. Just like it reads your messages. It's all AI recognition not someone personally watching you, but it is. I don't know why people are trying to claim otherwise. It similar technology to echo/google home etc. - picking out keywords to target advertisements.

You need to go investigate your settings (both on facebook and your phone) and limit what you're not comfortable with.

bbpp · 22/04/2018 00:13

P.s iPhones etc. have been 'listening' for years, that's how they know you've said 'Hey Siri' and can kick into action. When you accept facebook terms and conditions their automatic settings give them access to your phone's microphone too, and they listen for ways to direct ads.

Octave777 · 22/04/2018 00:17

I was on the phone about asking to borrow a screw driver. Never googled it. Not on Facebook. Two mins later there is an ads for screwdrivers.

Dun dun duuuun.

Lacucuracha · 22/04/2018 00:19

It's not a coincidence. Are you friends on social media? The website cookies have seen what your friend searched for and assumed you are like your friend so showed you the same ad. It assumes we are like our friends.

trueblueari · 22/04/2018 00:24

This exact thing happened to me last week. My grandma phoned talking about buying suitcases as we're going on a family holiday and I'd said "I still have my (insert designer here) suitcase I bought when I moved away, I'll use that."
Not 10 minutes later, I have ads for suitcases and an ad for that designer.

TheHumanMothboy · 22/04/2018 00:29

Isn't it more likely Google?

bbpp · 22/04/2018 00:39

Oh, AI looks at your pictures too! (But for the dress cookies are more likely) They have facial recognition, and those captchas where you have to 'select the pictures with cars' etc. is training AI to be able to 'see' what a photo is. This is Facebook etc and iPhones too, try searching cat in your photos and they'll all come up!.

I think it's interesting but personally see it as an intrusion, and I think it's wrong how many people are unaware. And slightly embarrassing you can search 'brassiere' and all your nudes pop up

Gibraltaryousay · 22/04/2018 00:41

I said the words "fab ice lolly" yesterday. Popped up on instagram ads today

Walkingdeadfangirl · 22/04/2018 00:42

Just do a quick experiment, I have. Think of a random item, say its name a few times in front of your laptop/mobile etc and wait to see if it turns up in adverts.

You will find FB/google etc is tracking your online activity and that of anyone connected to you. Ads are not yet connected to ambient voice activity.

LidoDeck · 22/04/2018 00:42

Definitely listening. There's a picture of Mark Zuckerberg in the Facebook office, and behind him you can see he's covered his webcam and microphone over on his laptop...

www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/jun/22/mark-zuckerberg-tape-webcam-microphone-facebook

PerfectlySymmetricalButtocks · 22/04/2018 06:05

Yes, it asked me only yesterday if I wanted face recognition switched on.

GladAllOver · 22/04/2018 11:00

Yes, it asked me only yesterday if I wanted face recognition switched on.

You can turn it off, but you can't make sure your FB friends have it turned off and if they post a picture with you in it they have given FB your face anyway.

It really is getting very invasive.

MorningsEleven · 22/04/2018 11:14

Laughed in an 'well obviously' way??

My husband - also "high up in IT" - gets ads for things I've spoken about with friends because we're on the same WiFi network and all devices get spammed. His area is communications software and he's well aware that our conversations are harvested.

Brittanyspears · 22/04/2018 11:26

I deleted my fb account a few weeks ago (make sure you delete, not just deactivate) I had cold sweats for a few days now wonder why I didn't do it long long ago. Its the pits!

ToothyMcPuthy · 22/04/2018 12:42

Agree OP.

DH and i discussed taking DS to watch a football match abroad. DH had looked at the football tickets but said hotels too expensive. The next time I logged into FB, an ad for ‘Cheap Hotels in ’ popped up. I’ve never googled anything to do with football, the particular team or the city we discussed.

trueblueari · 22/04/2018 13:04

Following on from a post about iPhones:
If you have any nude/underwear pictures of yourself or anyone else (even models) on your iPhone, it knows. Go to your photos folder and search "brassiere" and they all come up. They are constantly tracking your activity, that's just a fact.

YetAnotherUser · 22/04/2018 13:30

It probably isn't listening.

Your mum googled sunflower hearts, saw that they were available at wilko. The advertising system picked up on this.

The Facebook ad system probably showed the ad to you because you are friends with/related to your mum.

I turn off all interest based ads, reset my advertising identification frequently, and install an adblocker. Cuts out the most part of this sort of thing.

stopgap · 22/04/2018 13:32

Of course it’s listening. If the technology described in the article below is well on its way to becoming a reality, then manipulating data by using a microphone must surely be available:

www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/technology/2018/apr/06/researchers-develop-device-that-can-hear-your-internal-voice

Bettiedraper · 22/04/2018 13:39

Go to settings, then privacy, then microphone. You can switch off the microphones you don't need.

I don't see any microphone settings in the Privacy tab. Does this only apply if you use FB on a phone?

SubtitlesOn · 22/04/2018 13:55

Doesn't ALEXA and others like it do that 24/7

I am not sure why people are happy to buy these devices and have them listening to them 24/7

GladAllOver · 22/04/2018 14:01

The reason Alexa and similar devices are so cheap is that the information you freely give them is so valuable. They could actually afford to give them out free, but then you would be really suspicious. So they make a small charge.

Voice0fReason · 22/04/2018 22:39

Can anyone solve this one...2 days ago my friend sent me a screenshot of a ted baker dress that she liked. Not long after I started getting Ted baker ads. Now I never said the words ted baker out loud...or searched it... and yet suddenly ads appear. I cannot believe it is a coincidence
AI is good but it can't look at a screenshot of a photo and identify the designer of the dress in the picture! Ted Baker pay for Google/FB ads. Your friend saw an advert for a Ted Baker dress because she is in their marketing target group. You are in the same marketing group so their adverts were also targetted at you.

Flip

1 2 3 4 5