Re: Because the unregulated internet is great!
Sorry what I meant was that all forms of surveillance eventually have negative impact, people can tolerate it for longer than you would expect, but eventually humans just snap. And since in the digital age people can not typically see 1,000+ companies following them everywhere as they move around online, it may take far longer for them to flip.
The way most commercial surveillance is currently setup today the advertisers NEVER have any access to the metadata that is harvested, that would be giving away the golden goose. Advertisers bid at automated microsecond auctions on a set of filters and keywords to specify where their ads will be shown. The more specific the keywords and filters the more it will cost per ad. So say shoving your add in the faces of lgbtqia2s+, living in San Francisco, aged 18-30, who are expecting their first child in the next three months, with the message arriving just after lunch (typically after people have eaten they are a little bit nicer/dopier than usual and think everything a great idea - best time in work to talk about a raise), displayed prominently in the top half of the screen would cost far more than say targeting the message to expectant parents in California.
So anyhow if the advertisers are dragging you out of your home in the middle of the night for spending money, that would truly be a surprise. (P.S. I gave you a thumbs up anyhow, because you made me smile)
No the only people who should in theory have access are the people who are harvesting the data and everyone (probably about 1000 companies) in the partner programs. And even though legally governments in the west can not typically collect the metadata due to pesky laws they can fully circumvent the law, with secret compulsory court orders with gagging (e.g. FISA in the US) to force access the metadata they can not collect directly. And since the data is not perfect that killer UAV might be sent to the wrong address - oops collateral damage, oh well next.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
