The Hidden Spy in Your Pocket: 8 Ways Your Devices Secretly Watch You (Along With Solutions) (3 of 5)

Search and Browsing History

Every time you click on a link, use a search engine, or scroll through your social media feed at 2am, your web browser and individual apps are learning a whole lot about you, including your interests. They profit from your data, and use it to determine what ads and content to show you.

Solution: Go to your device and browser’s settings to see what your ad personalization options are. You should have the ability to opt out. Instead of using Chrome, Microsoft Edge, or Safari, opt for Firefox or DuckDuckGo as they don’t do ad tracking. Block hidden trackers using such extensions as Privacy Badger.

Social Media Interactions

As long as you limit the photos and messages you post on your social media accounts, you’re in the clear, right? Actually, Facebook and other social platforms are far more comprehensive when they track your social media behaviors. For example, they track likes, follows, how long you’re watching a video, and even the time spent looking at a photo! The algorithm, in turn, churns out content that the platform thinks you’ll also be interested in.

Solution: This one might be difficult to do, but limit the amount of time you spend on social media. Be mindful of what you post and “like.” Use the social media platform’s settings to disable access to the data they’re looking to collect. Utilize the “incognito” mode or separate browser profiles for different accounts.