Here’s How Social Media Almost Ruined My Engagement Surprise

Internet advertising, particularly on social media, is making it harder and harder for people to keep secrets. I recently found out the hard way. I'm sure you've noticed by now that the ads that you see on social media sites and apps like Facebook and Twitter are specifically targeted to your interests. One of the ways they learn about your interests is by monitoring your web browsing. That's right...even when you're not on Facebook or Instagram, they still know what websites you're going to, and what you're shopping for. Kind of creepy right?

I've known this for a while, but didn't think too much of it...I feel like I don't have anything to hide, so it hasn't really been an issue for me. That is, until I started shopping for engagement rings online. Suddenly, all of the ads I saw in my social media feeds were for engagement rings. Which became problematic when I was scrolling through my feed sitting next to Kathleen. So I had to start being a little more discreet, by angling my phone away from her. It made me look like I had something to hide...because I did!

After I proposed, I told Kathleen about this. I was shocked to learn that she had been seeing the same type of ads IN HER FEED! One could conclude that because social media knew I was ring shopping, and they also know that Kathleen is my girlfriend, that they would use this information to place those ads in her feed too, to get her excited about ring shopping as well. And you know what...I wouldn't put it past them!

I just think it's all rather shady. But that's the price you pay to use these sites and apps...and if you don't want them doing it, you can simply stop using them. But are you really going to? Of course not!