Of course, you know that your smartphone seems to spy on you. You tell your laptop about your desire to buy new sneakers and every website starts to scream about Nike Air Max. It is neither magic nor a conspiracy with microphones. It is just personalized marketing and ads that tech companies create your digital profile through your web activity.
Luckily for you, you can easily escape such marketing and advertising. You do not have to be a hacker to do it. We will tell you how to disable these settings for all platforms. It takes you just about 10 minutes and nothing else. Grab your smartphone or your browser and let us begin.
First of all, let us start with Google, the king of information collection. Just go to myadcenter.google.com. There you can see a toggle switch that you need to disable immediately. Also, you can go down to "Customize ads" and "Sensitive" categories. You can block particular categories here. It is quite surprising but also quite rewarding. You tell Google that you do not care about its assumptions about your purchases.
However, do not stop here. Visit myactivity.google.com and take a look at your Web and App Activity. There you can see your search history that is stored by Google. You can turn it off but prepare yourself to face slightly stupid search results afterwards. It is a price for your privacy. Also, you need to visit your YouTube history because that algorithm is quite persistent. It creates an endless loop based on one weird video that you have watched at 2 AM.
Next, let us go to the next step and fix social networks. If you use TikTok, just open the app and go to your profile. Click on three lines in the top right corner for "Settings and privacy". Find "Ads" and then "Ad personalization". Turn it off. It will not stop ads from being shown but they will become random and irrelevant. You will not see the product that you have looked at for just two seconds anymore.
When it comes to Instagram and Facebook that belongs to Meta, it is a bit more difficult process. Open the Instagram application and go to Settings. Find "Ads" and then "Ad Topics". There you can choose to see less of particular topics. Unfortunately, Meta tries to make this process really complicated. You will have to do this both on the application and on the desktop version of the page. It may seem tiresome but is absolutely necessary.
If you use Snapchat, you also need to open your settings. Scroll down to "Additional Services" and click on "Manage". Find "Ad Preferences" and uncheck everything. Thus, you will prevent the company from using your activity outside the app. It is a small step but it is necessary for your general digital security. Every small step is helpful in fighting with those huge data brokers.
Apple provides iPhone users with a great tool called App Tracking Transparency. Go to Settings, then Privacy, and then Tracking. Make sure that "Allow Apps to Request to Track" is turned off. This toggle switch prevents apps from tracking you on other websites. It is the most effective privacy setting for any mobile device.
Android users have similar setting that is hidden in their Settings. Go to Google Settings, then Ads, and click on "Delete advertising ID". Thus, you delete unique code that apps use to track you. It is like removing the name tag from you in a huge conference. You become just another face for the companies.
Now let us discuss Microsoft and Xbox. Almost everyone has old Hotmail account or uses Windows. Just go to account.microsoft.com and login. Then go to Privacy section and find "Ad settings". Also, if you play on Xbox, you should check settings menu under "Account" and "Privacy". It collects your usage data and sells games based on it. You should limit the access to this data.
Amazon is another big company. It knows about what you buy, browse, and wish. Go to "Your Account" and find "Advertising preferences". Uncheck the box of personalized ads. It is especially important if you use family account. Your parents may not be happy seeing ads for the present that you just ordered for them.
Some people may wonder whether it will ruin the internet for them. The answer is no. You will still see ads but they will be generic. Maybe you will see ads for dog food although you are a cat person. It is quite amusing to see how wrong the advertisers can be. It shows that smart algorithms are not so smart and guess something wrong.
Why should you do all that? It is about control over your data. You become the product if the service is free. By disabling all those settings, you prevent the algorithms from training to manipulate you. You prevent endless retargeting that follows you from one site to another. It cleans up your digital space making internet less creepy for you.
Remember to check all these settings regularly. Companies tend to reset your preferences after major updates. They count on your laziness and do not expect that you will remember to change all that once again. Set the reminder on your calendar for three months from now. Make it a regular habit like cleaning your locker or sorting your desktop folders. Digital hygiene is no less important than daily.
There are some browser extensions that block ads for you. For example, uBlock Origin is a great free tool for Chrome and Firefox. It blocks ads from loading on some websites. Another great extension is Privacy Badger. It learns while you browse. All these programs work in the background while you study and watch streams. They are the artillery in your privacy toolset.
We live in a highly connected world now. It is impossible to stay invisible completely online without going into a cave. However, you can minimize noise. You can make sure that Big Tech does not earn on your private life. It requires a little effort but peace of mind is always worth it.
So, let us do it now. Do not just read about it and forget. Open those tabs and click. You will feel much better knowing that you finally got rid of part of privacy. It is your data and it is your choice who should use it.
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