Most of us have had Facebook (and Instagram) target us with timely ads after a vocal discussion on a topic (or simply thinking) with no logical explanation for how they knew about it.<p>What has been your strangest ad targeting, and what’s the most likely logical explanation (if any)?
I googled from incognito Mobile Firefox a specific brand's specific mattress cover, and visited its listing on the websites of various retailers. Since nobody had it in stock locally, the next day I ended up ordering the item from Amazon.<p>A day later, I was browsing Facebook on my home desktop and saw an ad for the exact same item in my feed.<p>It's likely they partner with data brokers of credit card companies for your purchase history. For me, this is the only explanation, as I did not talk about the item out loud, and have no mic-enabled Facebook-owned app on my phone in any case. As a low-tech solution, correlating IP addresses with "suspected companion device" is also likely.
Mine is from a few new, recent conversations (phone, in-person) about renting my condo on Airbnb, specifically about 3rd party management services. I just started getting targeted for manorshare, one of these services. This company was never vocalized or typed. I don’t have the Facebook app installed.<p>My only explanation is that I searched for several far future dates for pricing on airbnb in my condo complex. airbnb knows my email, knows I searched my own home thus indicating I’m a potential lister. Airbnb sells/leases this information to manorshare who then used my email on Facebook for direct targeting.