digisafe
A famous saying about free online services hints at exactly how those companies actually make their money behind the scenes.
The maxim 'if the service is free, you are the product' describes how many free online platforms actually make money: rather than charging users directly, they monetize attention and behavioral data by selling targeted advertising, meaning the real customer paying the bills is the advertiser, not the person using the app.
These companies aren't volunteer charities running purely for public benefit, and free accounts don't secretly withdraw money each month — that would simply be fraud, not the legitimate business model the phrase is actually describing.
Understanding this changes how people think about privacy settings and paid subscriptions: since the underlying business model relies on collecting and using personal data for ad targeting, paying directly for a service is often, in effect, paying to opt out of being the product.
digisafe
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