1. Prevent/Stop it: This ship sailed long ago. Not to be grim about it but pandoras box got opened.
2. Fight it: Tool up, change your print, your behavior, your place. Build focused VM's that you use per topic. Simply do a WHOLE lot less. In the grand scheme, its a lot of work for low return. Note: there are exceptions.
3. Increase Noise: The whole point of most data collection is to sell more to you. Because most people are sheep, a fairly simple model can be surprisingly accurate (over targeting is an issue). Don't be a sheep, diversify, make more noise in the system, search out side your comfort zone and change it up often.
I thought about the noise route, but doesn't that make you more unique? Maybe if many users share the noise, but then that makes it easier to identify what's noise and what's not.
Any thing that doesn't impact the signal, or can be separated from the signal does not qualify as noise.
You want to quickly throw targeting systems off your scent (or get them distracted) see how sticky high value sales are for the ad's you see on line. Start looking for a new car, use the word wedding too much (god help you if your a woman) or say vacation 3 times near search engine and watch how quickly your ad experience changes.
This won't work "long term"
As an example: You get an ID as a 24 year old male, who likes his local sports ball team, drinks canned domestic beer... that's a profile that is perfect to sell you a BBQ grill and a subscription to the meat of the month club. Spend an hour or two a week pursuing sewing, the engine is going to get confused! Maybe you share a device with your wife, or she got on it...
This is the sort of noise you create, its not random its "more" and you do it by going off type for a while. Have a friend who is into something you aren't (music, art, and so on) ask them some questions and go spend a week getting more informed on their hobby and have a chat with them. Suddenly the systems will see you as MORE...
There are three options:
1. Prevent/Stop it: This ship sailed long ago. Not to be grim about it but pandoras box got opened.
2. Fight it: Tool up, change your print, your behavior, your place. Build focused VM's that you use per topic. Simply do a WHOLE lot less. In the grand scheme, its a lot of work for low return. Note: there are exceptions.
3. Increase Noise: The whole point of most data collection is to sell more to you. Because most people are sheep, a fairly simple model can be surprisingly accurate (over targeting is an issue). Don't be a sheep, diversify, make more noise in the system, search out side your comfort zone and change it up often.