Terrible - there’s something quite frightening about this specific targeting!

This cannot be a coincidence, now can it? I am seriously considering what, or even if, I email. Selling snake oil to us is one thing and we can all see through that but we can reveal far more sensitive details, believing ourselves to be safe, maybe leaving us open to more sinister contacts. Worrying.

On a lighter note why do I keep getting email advertising plus size clothing? I'm 53k and 5'5". Slim bordering on human twiglet

J

I get around 20similar emails every day...it's a ruddy nuisance, but no way to trace the sender........just says zazzle.org.uk

Grrrr!

Yes very strange. Me, the wife & kids all think something strange is going on. If we speak about something, the next thing is an advert for that very same thing comes up on Google, Facebook, twitter etc. We also have an Alex who talks to herself. We are not alone...

I think there are ways to block emails. Google may help with that one. Good luck & let me know how you get on. I don't know if a VPN would help you with Internet browsing.

It’s the evil cookies what do it😉. Every time you go on a site you have to agree to the evil cookies. So you go on a health site, like this, and they will pick it up and any ‘interested’ party, ie those who want to sell you stuff linked with health will bombard you with ads. So whatever you google or search for on the internet is logged I’m afraid. I have a high security level on my email. So it’s set that unless I know the sender, it just goes straight to my junk mail. I check this daily and if it is someone I know I move it to my in box. The rest gets automatically deleted after 5 days.

Don’t forget... Big brother is watching you! 😳😂

Spookie.x

That is astonishing ! Especially after GDPR came in in May.

I ve read couple of interesting books on social media lately: the people vs tech Jamie Bartlett & jaron Lanier ten arguments against social media but hasn’t stopped me coming on here ☺️ It’s all weighing up risks/benefits I guess: I don’t do Facebook and don’t like the idea of Alexa listening in to all that goes on in house. Quote from one of them: if you’re not paying for something then you are the product (or your data is)! X

Each time you go on a website it will ask about cookies, unfortunately not the good ones 😉 🍪, these track the things you look at online and then use the information to give you targeted advertising. You can change the cookie preferences for each website. When you get a junk email you can report it as a phishing scam and your email account should block it or automatically put it in your junk folder.

Not sure about Alexa (bought for us as an unexpected gift) as we only had ours plugged in for a few months and only asked her to tell us jokes, the weather or ask her stupid questions and never found anything untoward.

Thank you...I don't have Alexa,am not on any social media & delete 100% of emails I'm not sure of.

I close down anything asking to accept cookies........I have deleted every travel app I used to use as they seem major culprits.

It just seems odd that a subject discussed on HU now seems to result in emails advertising cures for that subject......when I have opened one thinking it was something else they all come from the same email address!

One or two I could understand but I have deleted about 10 already this morning & it's only 0732!

I'm wondering if I delete my HU account & start over it will still happen? I guess that wouldn't work.....as they come in to my personal email, and I had to change that a couple of years ago & am still feeling the repercussions!

Ah well...delete,delete,delete!

Check out the benefits of a proton mail email account. No big brother.

That's s dreadful. We must all learn to be more careful. Thank you

I don't get any emails advertising health products at all, just the usual adverts on websites that are using my cookie trail.

My friend deletes cookies on het tablet everyday, but I'm not sure how to do this.

Every now and again (not as often as I should) I delete all the cookies stored, it's a bit of a pain because then if forgets the sites where I've stored my password but I use that as a reminder to change the passwords. It does worry me that if I'm google searching for (say) a new handbag then FB seems to blast me with handbag ads.

Hi,

I don’t know which operating system you’re using. I was a Mac OSX user, now I only use iOS, as now use an iPad for everything.

I’m going to assume that what I suggest below also exist for Windows.

Firstly, Safari (the web browser for Mac OSX and iOS) has the capability to install what are called extensions. There’s an extension called Ad-Blocker which is free. I can heartily recommend this useful utility, because it will also block Facebook Ads as well - I can’t remember the last time I had an Ad on FB So, Google Ad-blocker - I think they do a version for Windows, don’t know about Android mobile systems.

Minty’s suggestion of Mail Washer is worth a look, as long as you’re running those systems. No good to Mac users or iOS.

Check that you’ve set your bowser to “private browsing” or whatever the equivalent is in Windows land.

See if your email software allows you to set rules for acceptable email. You may be able to implement a rule that says “Block everything from “zazzle.com””.

Lastly, I hear your pain, I’m having major issues with my mobile number - the amount of spam calls I’m getting is ridiculous - and all because I used it once on a “Compare” site, here in Australia - never, absolutely never again! Cheers Deb

That you for the info.....I use an iPad/Safari..have just gone through settings/preferences/privacy /found Prevent Tracking...so hope that will

Sort at least some of my problems....will look at Google Ad-Blocker.