I actually directly sell my data. I use Google opinion rewards and literally answer even more specific questions then your phone would automatically know. So privacy for the sake of privacy isnt something I care for (I've made over $100 since starting but its been like 3 years)I am pretty well off so a few effective ads won't hurt me too bad but those who aren't as fortunate could easily get sucked into a credit hole. The ads on Facebook etc are too effective at convincing financially insecure people to spend their money. While definitely not illegal, it's not crazy to expect someone to make a decision that benefits the whole. There are 100 things out there trying to extract wealth from the middle class so getting rid of Facebook won't save much but could give an exhausted, cloudy brained individual enough time to escape the pit that he is mindlessly letting himself fall into. I have an anecdotal example. I grew up in a frugal household. I move out, time passes, dad has mid life crisis, buys bmw, regrets. Pretty standard stuff. Last year he downloaded Facebook and it's like a switch flipped. You would have thought it's another midlife crisis. When I go to visit they always have packages on their porch. He's bought 3 different sets of bar stools through Facebook in the span of 1 year doing about 4k of damage in chairs alone. Dad is practically retired now and while he might be able to take another 3 or 4 years of this kind of spending, he'll be completely screwed for retirement. I've heard the argument that targeted ads are most beneficial to consumers since they're at least being targeted with something relevant to them rather than something completely random but I look at more like discounts. If it's on sale for 50% off but you weren't looking for it in the first place, you didn't save any money by buying it just because you can find a use for it later. We're not mentally strong enough as a society to be getting targeted ads lol. Our working class is already mostly living paycheck to paycheck. For those people even a few $100 charges could change the course of their life forever. The fairest thing to do is to let them sleep in the bed they made but a thriving working and middle class benefits everyone.