Sir, – I am part of an organisation that has been using Facebook ads for over three years. While relatively successful, the ads have never achieved the kind of targeting that we had initially been promised. It leads me to believe that there is an element of myth in relation to the ability of these companies to influence specific sectors of society by amassing large amounts of data.
I have also had a personal Facebook page for over four years. If the ads that appear on my page are a result of data accumulation and the famed algorithm, I don’t think we have anything to worry about.
There are many people willing to bend the truth to achieve their aims and there are many members of the general public only too willing to believe fairy tales. Surely this is the crux of the matter. If Facebook were to go out of business, this problem would still exist. – Yours, etc,
JOHN BURNS,
Blackrock,
Co Dublin.
Sir, – Facebook: DIY surveillance. – Yours, etc,
MICHAEL REDMOND,
Clongriffin,
Dublin 13.