Well, yeah. Of course lots of companies are targeting us for ads based on data that we lightheartedly assumed was private. It's even possible that they could do

Well, yeah. Of course lots of companies are targeting us for ads based on data that we lightheartedly assumed was private. It's even possible that they could do this without violating their ever-changing privacy policies. For example, they could say that the programs that review your messages don't retain any personally identifiable information. It might even be true. (Although there's no auditing of this and little or no accountability.) Online ads ... if you've ever paid for one you know they are desperately in need of targeting. We consumers provide our info directly to folks who sell ads, under terms and conditions that we don't understand. Of course they're making use of this free resource. They'd have to be idiots not to. So ... with respect, the wave of denial in the comments here ... 10 years ago, that would have seemed "naive but understandable." Today it's just weird. Almost like some kind of absurdist comedy. It's totally disconnected from the world we actually live in.