My phone is reading my mind

[Anonymous]

I was at the grocery store alone the other day, and I walked past a display of NEW! Wonderful brand pistachios in honey roasted flavor. I thought to myself, neat, now pistachios come flavored and shelled like peanuts. I made a mental note to maybe add them to my holiday hosting menu list. Then I carried on with my shopping.

I’m allergic to pistachios, so I never mention them. My husband hates them, so he would never mention them. Obviously I’ve never engaged in a phone search of pistachios. But today, I’m bombarded by Wonderful Pistachio ads everywhere I go on my phone. Could the nut display have had some sort of device attached to it that somehow pinged my phone? Or is my phone reading my mind?

[Anonymous]

Our thoughts are being conditioned and trained by markets. They're not reading our minds, we're following their predictive analytics. They have put out content to help our minds perceive it in the most flattering way possible

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our thoughts are being conditioned and trained by markets. They're not reading our minds, we're following their predictive analytics. They have put out content to help our minds perceive it in the most flattering way possible

This would make sense if I ever thought of pistachios. I don’t, because I can’t eat them. I’d never seen flavored nuts before running into them at the store. Now they’re all I see.

[Anonymous]

Our showerhead needed replaced. Considering that's something that rarely gets replaced, it's not really something you look up on a regular basis. We were talking about buying one. Looking at the hardware store, Amazon, etc. The next thing I knew, a YouTube video for shower heads came on. WTF...

[Anonymous]

Probably there is a coordinated media campaign going on. This is a new flavor right? So the pistachio company has decided to promote it by buying displays in grocery stores and web ads. It's not your phone, if anything it's shopping/ad algorithms on your phone based on what you've looked at previously that targets your demographic: UMC person with discretionary spending to spend on nuts. Your grocery store was targeted for the display because it is located in a UMC area.

[Anonymous]

Video in the store saw you pause and look.

[Anonymous]

The stores now have RFID chips and internet-of-things sensors embedded in shelves, displays, and even product packaging. These seniors can communicate directly with you mobile phone and send data back. For example, if you stood and looked at the display for a while the RFID is pinging that connection to the your phone and timing you. The data is sent to the manufacturer and then they use Google AdSense to push ads to you.

You can read more here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/lanabandoim/2018/12/23/how-smart-shelf-technology-will-change-your-supermarket/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The stores now have RFID chips and internet-of-things sensors embedded in shelves, displays, and even product packaging. These seniors can communicate directly with you mobile phone and send data back. For example, if you stood and looked at the display for a while the RFID is pinging that connection to the your phone and timing you. The data is sent to the manufacturer and then they use Google AdSense to push ads to you.

You can read more here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/lanabandoim/2018/12/23/how-smart-shelf-technology-will-change-your-supermarket/

Yep. Especially if your phone number is attached to your grocery account.

I actually like it because now my coupons are more targeted

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The stores now have RFID chips and internet-of-things sensors embedded in shelves, displays, and even product packaging. These seniors can communicate directly with you mobile phone and send data back. For example, if you stood and looked at the display for a while the RFID is pinging that connection to the your phone and timing you. The data is sent to the manufacturer and then they use Google AdSense to push ads to you.

You can read more here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/lanabandoim/2018/12/23/how-smart-shelf-technology-will-change-your-supermarket/

I’ve always thought it was RFID chip too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Video in the store saw you pause and look.

Maybe. I think that somehow your phone was pinged by the pistachio barcode or display chip.

[Anonymous]

My uncle whatsapped me talking about an amazing experience he had flying this Asian airline I had never heard of. About 30 min later an ad came up on a YouTube video I was watching about that very same airline. WhatsApp is supposed to be super secure and impossible to hack, but my phone is using the content for targeted ads. It’s really insidious.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My uncle whatsapped me talking about an amazing experience he had flying this Asian airline I had never heard of. About 30 min later an ad came up on a YouTube video I was watching about that very same airline. WhatsApp is supposed to be super secure and impossible to hack, but my phone is using the content for targeted ads. It’s really insidious.

I've had the same issue recently. Was texting a friend about the hair dye she used the it not working and her plan to let her hair go gray; and right after on FB an article popped up about letting your hair gray in your 30s, then another one appeared about how toxic (she's also trying to get pregnant).

Is there something on the phone we can turn off to prevent this?

[Anonymous]

I was talking to a friend recently about a fresh food delivery service she was using. Went on my laptop afterwards and every add was about that food delivery service or a similar one. I assume google is listening to my phone calls and then tailoring all the adds I see on other devices.

[Anonymous]

Turn off your microphone in all apps and location services.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Probably there is a coordinated media campaign going on. This is a new flavor right? So the pistachio company has decided to promote it by buying displays in grocery stores and web ads. It's not your phone, if anything it's shopping/ad algorithms on your phone based on what you've looked at previously that targets your demographic: UMC person with discretionary spending to spend on nuts. Your grocery store was targeted for the display because it is located in a UMC area.

I think that makes the most sense--big data really doesn't need the inefficiency of tracking your steps in the grocery store.

But this doesn't explain the single mom I know who has been singing along to some particular female vocal artist in the car using her phone and now FB is recommending voice coaches to her. (which means FB thinks she has talent or FB wants her to stop??)