(A Google search for “Winter dolphin” turned up links about a dolphin named Winter who had a prosthetic tail, which I vaguely remember watching a video about.) Other categories were far more accurate: The “Sports and Outdoors” category correctly listed the New England Patriots, Boston Red Sox and Syracuse basketball as my interests. Apparently I had clicked ads or liked Pages related to those interests. Under my “Hobbies and Activities” category, for example, the interests “moose,” “dental floss” and “Winter dolphin” were inexplicably listed.įor an explanation about why it was included, hover over it. You might notice a mix of random and on-point interests. Click any of these categories to view the interests – some categories may have well more than 100 listed. Your Ad Preferences page displays more than 10 categories, from food and drink to sports and outdoors. Hidden in your advertisement settings is an option to review and edit the interest list that informs which ads you see, as well as a tool that explains why you were served a specific ad. Of course, Facebook doesn’t always get it right. That means if you’re thinking about buying a new car and start to research your options online, Facebook might show you ads for new or used cars, or deals for remote car starters or car washes, based on that activity. Life in the fast lane: What gigabit Internet makes better.How three old-school companies became digital platform players.

Ever wonder where they come from?įacebook determines which ads it serves you based on a number of factors, including the information you share with the social network, Pages you like or engage with, ads you click on, apps you use, websites you visit and information from its data providers and advertisers, it says. You’ve seen them before: irrelevant Facebook ads that pop up in your feed, leaving you scratching your head.

Ads preference manager