So far the negative effect on my life of the sum total of tracking and ad-profiling has been - to the best of my knowledge - neglible. (Largely because the ability of companies to use data to my detriment hasn&#x27;t kept pace with the thirst for collecting it).<p>In return I&#x27;ve been given free access to a huge amount of free content and free functionality. Plus - very occasionally - the advertising is beneficial rather than merely irrelevant.