Nobody Wins on the Internet

By Sarah Aterrado - August 20, 2021

I was mindlessly scrolling Facebook, when this appeared on my feed:

Doesn't it creep you out when Facebook is making weird and sometimes disturbing assumptions about you? It's as if Facebook is telling me, "Hey, here's some beautiful shit we thought you would like."

Wait, what?! Why? I only opened and reacted to a photo of a toilet bowl (from Home Buddies) once. Once!

But more than that, Facebook will also, time and again, attack you with a brutally true content.

I feel attacked.

Facebook knows about everything that only you would know. Your deepest, darkest secret isn't exactly safe when you are on the internet.

In my case, it already knew about the things I added to cart and my incoming purchases before the husband ever did.

And what's more unsettling is that Facebook seems to be eavesdropping on our private conversations too. One time, Jan and I talked about a certain batch mate at my high school. And boom! In a few hours, she's already on my People You May Know list. The things we talk about would suddenly come popping in on the Suggested for You section. Food, parenting woes, people, finances, name it. It happens. Every. Single. Time.

So by now, I assume everyone else is getting targeted ads for skin care, home improvement, plants, or gadgets. I, on the other hand, am afraid of what will appear on my newsfeed soon because this is how our recent conversation went:

While waiting at the drive-thru, Magasin by Eraserheads was playing on the radio. So I sang...

♪♫ Iba na ang 'yong giti. Iba na ang 'yong tingin. Nagbago nang lahat sa yoooo oh oh. ♪♫

Jan: Unsa nang giti? (What's a giti?)
Me: Ambot. Nadunggan lang nako ginakanta na sa uban. (I don't know. I just heard it from other people).

Out of curiosity, I Googled the word, giti. The result shocked me. The first thing that went through my head was this:

Fudge! I've been singing this version of Magasin and "sa iyong giti, ako'y nahuhumaling" out loud, not to mention with feelings, in public for so many years!

😳😰😂

Those unbelieving, disgusted death stares make sense to me now.