I was randomly surfing the Net the other day and lingered
for a while on the website of the Steam Packet Company, a shipping line which
connects the Isle of Man to mainland Britain
and Ireland ,
see: http://www.steam-packet.com/. Then
I checked my emails and lo and behold, I'd just been sent some spam from Steam
Packet; coincidence? Then I went to the HPANWO Forum, see Links column, and guess
what I saw in the ad pane? Steam Packet, see image above. You might say this is
not significant and that I probably receive spam from Steam Packet all the
time; I just happened to notice it this time because I'd been reading up on the
Company, but advertising agencies do target web users with adverts related to their
browsing habits using several methods like "spamdexing, see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spamdexing.
I may be overreacting, but this makes me feel uncomfortable. It's a bit
paranoid of me because I know there are no people involved and the system is
completely automated, but I no longer feel anonymous online. The technology
that allows advertisers to send particular kinds of spam to particular Web users
can be easily adapted to more nefarious purposes. Intelligence agencies like GCHQ
and the NSA can build a profile of you by monitoring your activity online.
We've long suspected this and the recent revelations of Edward Snowden support
it.
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