Why can Facebook keep track of user behavior with accuracy that seems to be "wiretaping?"

bybarbara w

Or is displayed UNIQLO advertising on Facebook on the night of the "Uniqlo clothes can try on?" The date on which the remark, "I digital scale No. 1 good guy what?" And a few minutes after the digital scale to Instagram heard from reports that the ad is displayed, "Facebook performs the information collected using the microphone of the smart phone, than has been used in the ad?" rumor that had been flowing for some time. However, as it can keep track of the action at the time of the user's offline without using the microphone, is a columnist for The Wall Street JournalJoanna SternThinks that mechanism with an example.

Facebook Really Is Spying on You, Just Not Through Your Phone's Mic - WSJ
https://www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-really-is-spying-on-you-just-not-through-your-phones-mic-1520448644


About the content that "Facebook is collecting information using a microphone?" In 2016, Facebook said "Facebook is not using a phone microphone for advertisements and news feeds"I deny it.. However, as Facebook denies, it does not prove that the microphone is not actually used for advertisement. So, Stern contacted former employees of Facebook, a technology expert, and said, "We used audio for technical and legal reasonsSnoopingIt is impossible. "The answer came back. Investigating from the collected large volume of voice data says that Facebook employees will put pressure on resources even though NSA has done it.

So why does Facebook keep track of what users have done offline as well as online? When saying, I am collecting information by another method other than "Mike".

For example, Stern's advertisement for a nasal drop nose "Sudafed" was shown on Stern's Facebook starts with shopping done in the pharmacy chain "Wal Green". Stern purchased tissue spray and Afrin rhinitis spray at Wal Green, in that case, he said that he registered his phone number in exchange for getting a point card. Information such as registered phone number and e-mail address is gathered by third parties collecting data together with Wolf Green purchase history.

On the other hand, Johnson & Johnson selling Sudafed is paying data brokers to get information. By using the Facebook tool you can get the user's email address and phone number, so we check it against the information on the point card obtained via the broker. At this time, Facebook explained that the information uploaded by the broker is processed by an algorithm so that it can not be identified by an individual, but still it is possible to collate information with a Facebook account.

With this mechanism, Facebook can target advertisements with "targeting people who are 25 to 54 years old who purchased Sudafed or similar products".

In other words, registration of a point card is the key to advertisement display, and in order not to get information to Facebook, it is necessary not to use a point card, or to register a phone number or mail address that is not in use.

And there is "location information" in the personal information used more than purchase history. When you drop in at a store you will be able to see the location information, the advertisement will be displayed to visit the shop again, or the coupon will be displayed when walking in the neighborhood of the shop.

If you do not want to know your location information on Facebook, you can change settings from Facebook mobile app. Tap the menu icon ......


Tap "Settings".


From "Account setting" ......


Tap "Location information".


It is OK to set the position information to "not permitted" and to turn off "position information history".


Also, if you allow location information for other apps, it may eventually be used for Facebook advertisement, so not only Facebook applications but also you need to think over before allowing location information, Stern Says.

Also, Stern said "Lose It!When downloading the meal tracking application named "Food tracking application" to iPhone, it said that fitness and weight loss advertisement appeared on Facebook and Instagram before 24 hours since downloading the application. Free version of Lose It! On FacebookAudience NetworkAnd it was said that it was a mechanism to deliver advertisements that made use of Facebook's mobile targeting function to the application even if the user does not log in to Facebook when using the application.

According to Stern, in the case of Lose It! It was displaying the advertisement by matching the advertisement identifier (IDFA) of the iPhone with the IDFA history of other services including Facebook. In order to stop such advertisement display, in iOS, select "setting" to "privacy".


Press "Facebook" ...


Turn on "Restrict tracking ads".


For Android, select "Google" from "Settings".


Then tap "Advertisement" ...


Turn on "Opt out advertisement personalization".


The portrait of "you" created by summarizing various information such as posts on Facebook and Instagram and friendships becomes clearer by matching with broker information such as annual income, car preference, hobby . From this portrait, advertisers are FacebookAdvertisement managerStart targeting with. The advertisement manager said that Stern, who does not use advertisement as a profession, can also log in and can focus on "people who purchased furniture", "people who cooked with spice", "people who are likely to move" who live in a specific zip code Thing.

In conclusion Stern says that it is difficult to completely stop Facebook tracking, there is only way to delete the app and stay in the cellar.

Facebook says, "If targeting goes well, the content of the ads will be better.Targeting ads will allow users to control" what they see "by themselves, and not to share people's personal information with advertisers It is a method, "Stern says," Since it is unclear how the targeting is done, it is unclear how much Facebook understands the behavior of the real world of the user, so it is more privacy I do not know the location ".