Test it. Pick a medical condition, randomly. From the musty pages of an old-fashioned book, so there's no digital connection.
Then mention that disease a few times in the presence of your Alexa, Siri, or Google whatever. Talk about the disease to your wife on a phone call once or twice (make sure she's in on it, so she knows never to type the disease into a search engine).
See if you start getting ads for treatment for that disease.
It's a little crazy, but I'm not convinced it's impossible. I've something similar to me happen a couple times, but not under rigorously controlled circumstances, so maybe it was google searches by a relative or friend who overheard me, and I was marketed to by association? Maybe somebody with that disease visited my house and their location was broadcast and linked to my wifi?
Then mention that disease a few times in the presence of your Alexa, Siri, or Google whatever. Talk about the disease to your wife on a phone call once or twice (make sure she's in on it, so she knows never to type the disease into a search engine).
See if you start getting ads for treatment for that disease.
It's a little crazy, but I'm not convinced it's impossible. I've something similar to me happen a couple times, but not under rigorously controlled circumstances, so maybe it was google searches by a relative or friend who overheard me, and I was marketed to by association? Maybe somebody with that disease visited my house and their location was broadcast and linked to my wifi?
Unsettling, any way you cut it.