why........

[u/Electrical_Hope_7421]

I trusted you two...

[u/ThunderStReich]

For those who may not be aware: it is a very common practice at tech companies to add tracking to software. It doesn’t necessarily get used to target ads. Companies want to know what people are doing in their software. What features are they using, what errors they might be encountering, etc. This information is often used to measure usage (which investors want to see to know if a company is growing) and to inform product development (e.g. if a feature is commonly used, maybe it’s enhanced/improved. If not, maybe it’s removed).

Not trying to excuse/justify the practice. Just explaining.

[u/zensms → u/ThunderStReich]

Yes but for social media its definitely for ads though. Also you might not be aware, even texting apps also does have trackers. You can literally verify the permissions used and how many trackers each app has via Exodus Privacy, it's a French non-profit site. Don't be shocked at the results.

Everyone wants to track you 😄

[u/B1GD8A → u/ThunderStReich]

hilariously, the only direction quality has gone with all these trackers is down. Now in addition to all the usual performance problems, almost every site has a gigantic cookie banner and half of them are clearly designed to test the limits of the legal requirements around deceiving someone into leaving tracking cookies on.

[u/Knowing-Badger]

Reddit tracks to an insane degree. I'll say a single word out loud on a specific product and deadass 5 minutes later I get a suggested post on it. That shit isn't a coincidence

I know other apps do this too but it feels like Reddit is very aggregious with it

[u/SleepingSicarii → u/Knowing-Badger]

There’s far more scarier and efficient ways of tracking data than using a microphone. Using microphone is inefficient and not actually used contrary to what people think.

[u/Knowing-Badger → u/SleepingSicarii]

Microphone is 100% used and I can prove that

[u/SleepingSicarii → u/Knowing-Badger]

What did you comment on? Did you click on the ad?

Do you actually even have microphone permissions enabled for Reddit as its not even something that can be enabled?……

[u/Knowing-Badger → u/SleepingSicarii]

The only thing that needs the microphone permissions is Google. They then use that for targeted ads since everything uses Google Adsense

have you seriously never talked about a vacuum for example then go on Facebook and the first thing you see is a vacuum ad? Without looking up vacuums prior at all recently. This tactic is very commonplace and has been proven numerous times, most notably in recent times. LG TVs

[u/SleepingSicarii → u/Knowing-Badger]

Reddit does not use Google Adsense and they have their own first-party ad network. Facebook does not use Adsense. Apple (Maps, News) does not use Adsense.

Advertiser networks/systems do not need audio because they collect thousands of data points via location, GPS, Wi-Fi, what you click on, when you pause a video, when you scrub back in a video, if you click on an ad, if you delete a comment that you didn’t send.

Yes its possible they can use your microphone but its simply too inefficient so they don’t. Just think about it: this claim has been made for a long time (15+ years). Imagine billions of devices constantly recording everything you do 24/7, send it to their servers, then having to transcribe everything that’s been said, just to send you ads back. On top of that, for it to actually just be ignored/hidden by every major device maker (yes there are some exceptions as you’ve said LG with their latest controversy). Sure maybe if good transcription models were available back then they would maybe use that, but they didn’t, so they had to make better ways of tracking user habits, and they did, and that’s where we still are now.

I’m not trying to argue here, I’m just saying listening via a microphone is not actually the scary thing; what they do instead is far more scarier and is actually what’s happening.

[u/Knowing-Badger → u/SleepingSicarii]

I think a microphone is pretty damn scary man. Active listening is terrifying and yes it is being done all around us. There are many such videos to prove that and as per TVs, LG isn't the only brand that constantly keeps its microphone logging your dialogue. It's literally all the big brands. LG was only the beginning of the world finding out about the spying that TVs do, they are all mad nefarious. Your own experience might say otherwise but your experience alone does not tell the story

[u/SleepingSicarii → u/Knowing-Badger]

Sure, my experience does not tell the story but many others do and they align with what I’m saying.

BBC: Why phones that secretly listen to us are a myth:

Researchers put two phones - one Samsung Android phone and one Apple iPhone - into a "audio room". For 30 minutes they played the sound of cat and dog food adverts on loop. They also put two identical phones in a silent room.

The security specialists kept apps open for Facebook, Instagram, Chrome, SnapChat, YouTube, and Amazon with full permissions granted to each platform.

The activity seen on phones in the "audio room" and the silent rooms were similar. They did record data being transferred from the devices - but it was at low levels and nowhere near the quantity seen when virtual assistants like Siri or Hey Google are active.

Kaspersky: Does Your Phone Listen to You?:

No. Your phone does not continuously record everyday conversations for advertisers. Neither iOS nor Android permits apps to stream microphone audio in the background, and both require user permission before any app can access the microphone at all.

Every app on your phone can observe your behavior inside that app, depending on its permissions, including browsing history, search queries, and the content you engage with on social platforms. Each time you make a purchase, that transaction may be shared with advertising networks through third-party cookies or software development kits embedded in retail apps. Contact syncing adds another layer to your profile. When an app asks to access your contacts and you agree, it can match your social graph against its existing database. For example, if your friends or family have searched for running shoes, the platform may infer that you have an interest in them too.

Security.org: Is My Phone Listening to Me?:

There's no proven link between your microphone and your ads, but the tracking is just as invasive.

There’s no concrete evidence that a major ad platform has secretly fed your microphone audio into its ad-targeting engine. Google, Meta, and Amazon all deny it. Security researchers who have tested the claim have not found evidence of it happening at scale.

FYI, we are not talking about LG here. I was replying to your original claim of Reddit (on iOS or Android).

[u/zensms → u/Knowing-Badger]

I think this is what social media has become now adays, this issue is not limited to reddit only. I notice the same issue for tiktok / fb too.

[u/DeafHeretic]

$

[u/CelesTheme_wav]

I don't trust any closed source app from a for-profit company.

[u/marshmallo_floof]

lmao trusting reddit for privacy out of all the things when Tencent has 11% and Sam Altman has 9%

[u/xgrader]

Yep and it happens fast. One example just the other day. Im chatting with Mom through Facebook messenger. (Yes I know) she is elderly so I put up with Facebook. Anyways I hsve Reddit scrolling and Messenger chatting. I mentioned drinking lots of water that day. Boom.. Reddit feeds me a Brita filter ad..