Blocking The Deluge of Ads

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Who am I? I’m just a pawn in advertisers’ chess game. Microsoft and I are in a relationship. Sort of. That is why it sneaked in a message that I should help it tailor some advertising.

Should I? I mulled over it. The mulling stopped when I remembered the tail end. ‘This data is never associated with your device.’ Are you kidding me? Of course it is. Everything is. You’ll think that your date of birth is harm less. It isn’t. It’s an advertising pawn.

They also want to know my phone number. For what? It’s not in the public domain but advertisers still call me from Ontario, India, Malaysia, all over the globe. Chats? How do these people get my number? Chats? My foot!

Talking about my feet. Sometimes I get on the bus, to go and pick up warm bread from the bakery. Guess what? I now get ads from a restaurant on the bus route. How? I’ve never been there before. I rest my case. Now, I never worry about technology because it is pointless, like shouting at the sun. But, I have my ways of avoiding the collision.

I press the SKIP AD for many reasons. They come every minute. They also talk to each other. If I let a 15-sec enter my viewing pleasure, they’ll tell other ads that I’m user friendly. If I let a 20-sec go through, it becomes open season for the 20 somethings.

So, Microsoft listen up. I’m clueless when it comes to technology but I know one thing. The claim that ‘this data is never associated with your device’ is for the birds. Give me mama lion any time. She is upfront. She sees a steak dinner when I take selfies in a game reserve.

By: Nonqaba waka Msimang.

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