Newsletter Archives

  • Spying or helpful? You decide.

    PRIVACY

    Susan Bradley

    By Susan Bradley

    Years ago, my girlfriend had her first baby.

    Suddenly, I found myself sitting in front of my computer, searching only for baby bottles, baby clothes — everything baby-related.

    Milliseconds later (at least it seemed that fast), I was receiving mail for everything baby-related. Clearly, my online activity was being tracked, but I was missing the prominent online notices explaining how I could opt out.

    Then something really weird happened. That baby got a bit older. When he became a toddler, the marketing machine made sure I heard about the perfect baby pull-up pants. He hit kindergarten and I learned about all the books he needed to read.

    Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.48.0, 2023-11-27).