So I had a verbal conversation with a coworker yesterday and now I’m getting fed very specific ads. No possible way it’s accidental. I have most of the microphone access to apps limited, I have Google assistant turned off and no VPA setup in my home. I use a Oneplus 9 pro, does anyone have recommendations on how to further root cause this or just par for the course for using any standard android OS? Have other folks had similar experience after locking down their stock phones?
your coworker might’ve looked up things related to the conversation, and the ad provider figured out that you two are in the same social circle. so far I haven’t seen any actual research that would prove that ads are tailored based on microphone recordings (and actually seen the results stating the opposite a few years ago), just a bunch of anecdotal stories.
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Exactly, This is just how our brains work. It is surprisingly how much stuff we miss because it isn’t relivent to our lives. It is like those videos of the man in the gorilla suit in the background. You’re so focused on the subject of the video your missing a gorilla walking past in the background.
I notice this about words or phrases as well. If I pay attention to what I think is an uncommon word or phrase. Suddenly everyone I know friends, family and coworkers all “start” using that word or phrase. Now maybe they have started using it but I think it is more likely they have always been using that word/phrase but I have just not given it much thought.
That’s actually a great point. He is older and uses a dumb phone but we have been working with each other over 5 years so there are going to be lots of connections to each other. Furthermore this coincidental ad is rare, I haven’t gotten one like this in awhile.
It’s scary how accurate they can predict you with what data they have; they don’t need to tap your microphone.
You’re on a OnePlus; there’s always a status bar icon if the microphone is active.
Think of what led to your conversation? Everything related to it you saw or searched online that could’ve later triggered you to talk about the subject, could also trigger them to serve you ads about it later. Perhaps your friend was the one, and the ad companies have linked you together, ie. by tracking your location and contacts.
And now you’ve noticed the adverts, you’ll notice them much more, where you’d normally ignore them completely. Furthermore, if you noticed these ads, you might’ve clicked them or stopped scrolling and stared at them too long in a wtf moment and now the ad companies know, so they’ll serve you a whole lot more of the same.
I’ve seen ads for things I’ve only thought about but haven’t actually done any searches or even talked about yet. Innocuous stuff too, like a movie I wanted to buy on DVD. An older movie at that.
It’s very eerie.
They are probably just predictions based on the data the advertising companies gathered on you and you just happened to notice the ones that you only thought about.
Even if it’s entirely random you’re bound to run into some spooky occurrences.
You’re on a OnePlus; there’s always a status bar icon if the microphone is active.
This is a feature I think for all new Androids (at least pixel). BUT it does not cover all apps. System apps can hide it. Quick example, activate Google assistant voice activation. You should be seen the icon all the time, but likely you don’t.
I do see it on OnePlus though with all voice apps, including Google assistant. I think OxygenOS is not hiding it
I have 0 apps allowed microphone access all the time.
There is no evidence that phones are snooping on people, but I would say even if unlikely it’s a reasonable concern given what companies do get up to.
However it is more likely the ads were being served because of all the other data you’re allowing Google to scrape from you all the time rather than the phone mic.
Rather than focusing on the microphone, look at the bigger picture of how your data is being pillaged by Google all the time.
For me, I switched away from Gmail, stopped using their search engine, use Firefox and not Chrome, and don’t use their other services where possible. I have android on my phone and use Google maps and Google home. It’s still a huge problem but I use that part of the ecosystem for convenience and no other. Similarly on PC I don’t use Google for anything where I can avoid it, use Firefox containers to keep Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and Meta data as separate as possible, plus I use Linux and VPN as needed, and lots of privacy extensions in Firefox.
It’s possible to minimise your data exposure to the big tech companies, but difficult to severe completely. You could go even further and switch from android to Graphene OS (I have seriously considered this).
I would go by the principle of compartmentalising your data as much as possible and limiting access to snooping eyes. The transition can be hard but once you’ve done it you get used to using disparate unnonnected services. Like I really don’t need or benefit from my email data being connected to my data storage or my search engine; it’s a false convenience that benefitted Google only.
Thank you for the super thoughtful response. I’m in the process of fully ditching Windows. I use Vpn whenever I’m not home, I run my own cloud services, last big leap is to switch to graphene when I upgrade my phone and ditch the gmail accounts. I’m close and so finding this shockingly specific article got me thinking. Usually the articles are indeed spot on accurate but expected, not obscure yet specific.
me and a coworker tried an experiment almost ten years ago where we would whisper “breast milk pump” into a phone that had it’s screen locked and everything. About two weeks later started seeing ads for expecting mothers, we are both dudes…
It’s more likely that ad networks are showing you ads based on the other person being in vicinity and having things in common. I don’t think voice snooping is the main cause here
Before caller ID people were SURE they were psychic because ‘I was just thinking about them and they phoned’
The reality is the odds of things like that never happening are far more unlikely than it happening occasionally
I had a friend that was convinced that facebook was listening because she was talking about some ice cream and later got an ad for said ice cream.
Well, of fucking course you got an ad for ice cream. It’s fucking summer, you will get ads for ice cream in the summer.
I don’t see on the provided screenshot any apps that shouldn’t have the mic access. You can certainly deny it and break some apps functionality but you’ll be “safe from ads”
I bet using an adblock would make it much more difficult for your phone to call home. Try adaway
I have whole house ad blocking with a pihole and its enforced with pfsense. All DNS traffic gets NATed to pihole.
Excellent choice. Check the logs, there’s more than enough evidence in there to shut up some of the creepy big tech defenders in here. I see over 70,000 attempts from my wife’s phone alone trying to hit Samsung, Google or Meta. She doesn’t even have any Meta accounts, but has a Samsung phone, take a hint.
I didn’t know there was a such thing as FUTO Voice Input. It’s really good. Shame the “Open” nature of Google Android was rejected by Google Keyboard and other Google things…
pinephone has hardware killswitch. but that cant protect you from other devices like other ppl phones.
did you or some of the people in your inner circle google whatever you talked about? that is also another way it would have come up in your ads.
Or watch it on YouTube. Or look at it on Facebook. Or whatever.
Were both of you connected to the same network at the time you had the conversation? It’s possible your coworker had a lot of search/browsing history of what you were talking about and whoever is pushing the ads figured out you’re likely related to them by way of location/vicinity. I don’t think android is actively listening to your every conversation.
Just get a Pixel and flash GrapheneOS.
Not using degoogled phone
Internet access to non foss apps
NGMI
