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Netflix and Spotify experiment with ads based on data mining of our activities

Examples
Date

"To the 53 people who’ve watched A Christmas Prince every day for the past 18 days: Who hurt you?" Netflix tweeted in December 2017. While the tweet did not contain any information that could have identified any of the 53 people, it still made many of those who saw it uncomfortable. A Christmas Prince was a new movie released by Netflix, and the statistic is apparently derived from the service's detailed collection of data on what its subscribers watch.

Subscribers are generally aware that the service amasses data on what they watch, in part to recommend other shows and movies they might like and to decide what to commission, and this use of big data mining did not violate the company's stated privacy policy. Nonetheless, the tweet struck many as offensive rather than amusing. Other companies - notably, Spotify - have also run marketing campaigns based on mining data gathered by the system.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/17/business/media/netflix-spotify-marketing.html?_r=0

Writer: Sapna Maheshwari
Publication: New York Times

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Examples of Abuse
What PI is calling for

Limit data analysis by design

As nearly every human interaction now generates some form of data, systems should be designed to limit the invasiveness of data analysis by all parties in the transaction and networking.
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Control over intelligence

Individuals should have control over the data generated about their activities, conduct, devices, and interactions, and be able to determine who is gaining this intelligence and how it is to be used.
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Identities under our control

Individuals must be able to selectively disclose their identity, generate new identities, pseudonyms, and/or remain anonymous.
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