Do you have new "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
Settings > Google > Ads > Ad privacy >
Ad topics > (default is on)
App-suggested ads > (default is on)
Ad measurement > (default is on)

Is Google adding sneaky new ad activities that were never there before?
SourceDirectory for com.google.android.adservices.api
/apex/com.android.adservices/priv-app/AdServicesApkGoogle@331814200

*Apps Activity*
C:\> adb shell cmd activity start --user 0 -a android.intent.action.VIEW -n com.google.android.adservices.api/com.android.adservices.ui.settings.activities.AppsActivity -f 0 com.google.android.adservices.api
Allow app-suggested ads = on/off

*Topics Activity*
C:\> cmd activity start --user 0 -a android.intent.action.VIEW -n com.google.android.adservices.api/com.android.adservices.ui.settings.activities.TopicsActivity -f 0 com.google.android.adservices.api
Allow ad topics = on/off

*Measurement Activity*
C:\> adb shell cmd activity start --user 0 -a android.intent.action.VIEW -n com.google.android.adservices.api/com.android.adservices.ui.settings.activities.MeasurementActivity -f 0 com.google.android.adservices.api
Allow ad measurement = on/off

I don't think I've ever seen these before, so I just made three
new shortcuts to ensure they're always wiped out, but... I ask...

Do you have these "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
--
The whole point of Usenet is to find people who know more than you do.
And to contribute to the overall tribal knowledge value of the newsgroup.
It's a domino effect where each of us helps the next person in the lineup.

Wally J <walterjones@invalid.nospam> wrote:

> Do you have new "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
> Settings > Google > Ads > Ad privacy >

Is this the settings navpath for Pixel phones? I don't have a Google
phone. Or is this available on some recent Android version?

> Ad topics > (default is on)
> App-suggested ads > (default is on)
> Ad measurement > (default is on)
>
> Is Google adding sneaky new ad activities that were never there before?
> SourceDirectory for com.google.android.adservices.api
> /apex/com.android.adservices/priv-app/AdServicesApkGoogle@331814200
>
> *Apps Activity*
> C:\> adb shell cmd activity start --user 0 -a android.intent.action.VIEW -n com.google.android.adservices.api/com.android.adservices.ui.settings.activities.AppsActivity -f 0 com.google.android.adservices.api
> Allow app-suggested ads = on/off
>
> *Topics Activity*
> C:\> cmd activity start --user 0 -a android.intent.action.VIEW -n com.google.android.adservices.api/com.android.adservices.ui.settings.activities.TopicsActivity -f 0 com.google.android.adservices.api
> Allow ad topics = on/off
>
> *Measurement Activity*
> C:\> adb shell cmd activity start --user 0 -a android.intent.action.VIEW -n com.google.android.adservices.api/com.android.adservices.ui.settings.activities.MeasurementActivity -f 0 com.google.android.adservices.api
> Allow ad measurement = on/off
>
> I don't think I've ever seen these before, so I just made three
> new shortcuts to ensure they're always wiped out, but... I ask...
>
> Do you have these "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?

https://source.android.com/docs/core/ota/modular-system/adservices

Introduced in Android 13. Hard to tell if users want this. The "spin"
in the document makes it sound like something beneficial to users, but
we've before seen marketspeak that was nasty in disguise.

Wally J, 2023-11-06 06:57:

> Do you have new "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
> Settings > Google > Ads > Ad privacy >
> Ad topics > (default is on)
> App-suggested ads > (default is on)
> Ad measurement > (default is on)

Yes. Google Pixel 6a with Android 14 - but I can't remember exactly when
these options got introduced exactly.

--
Arno Welzel
https://arnowelzel.de

VanguardLH <V@nguard.LH> wrote

>> Do you have new "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
>> Settings > Google > Ads > Ad privacy >
>
> Is this the settings navpath for Pixel phones? I don't have a Google
> phone. Or is this available on some recent Android version?

Thank you for answering the question as these are brand new to me!
Much appreciated your help and advice, as always.

To answer your questions...

I have no idea what the navigation path to Google settings are in any phone
other than the one phone that I have updated to Android 13 which has this.
<https://i.postimg.cc/Kj4JdNLL/adprivacyshortcuts.jpg> Ad privacy switches

I never saw these before - and yes - I've checked - so my initial
assumption is that Google is fucking with us again by adding this.

But I don't know for a fact that anyone else has these settings.
I just know I never had them before - and now they're there.

I only found them accidentally when I was resetting all my switches which I
do every Sunday night because Google has a way of turning them back on.

I was shocked to see I had an "Advertising ID" for example, which I had
deleted long ago - so Google is inserting all sorts of sneaky stuff lately.

I wiped out the "Advertising ID" the instant I saw that Google had added it
back - and of course I immediately wiped out those 3 "Ad privacy" switches.

But I'm just curious if anyone else has the same ad-privacy new switches.

>> Do you have these "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
>
> https://source.android.com/docs/core/ota/modular-system/adservices
>
> Introduced in Android 13. Hard to tell if users want this. The "spin"
> in the document makes it sound like something beneficial to users, but
> we've before seen marketspeak that was nasty in disguise.

Thanks for digging up that this is brand new in Android 13, which is sad.
I asked what was new in Android 13 and nobody told me about these switches.
<https://i.postimg.cc/KvBw2tYT/adprivacyshortcuts01.jpg> Ad privacy Switch

These three new switches should have been compiling data since I updated to
Android 13 I guess, which was about a month or so ago, so that's bad.

Luckily, when I looked at the data that it had compiled, there wasn't any.
That may be due to my other settings or it may just be that it's a new
feature which isn't being taken advantage of by apps just yet which report
back to Google.

That's why it's important that I ask _others_ if they have their switches
turned on and if their switches have been reporting data back to Google.

BTW, just in case these switches get reset back on, I made 3 new one-tap
shortcuts for my homescreen folder which unsets them if they do get reset.
<https://i.postimg.cc/DZ0Pw3dD/adprivacyshortcuts02.jpg> one-tap shortcut

1. One-Tap *Apps Activity* Homescreen Dock Shortcut
Package Name = com.google.android.adservices.api
Activity Name = com.android.adservices.ui.settings.activities.AppsActivity
Allow app-suggested ads = off

2. One-Tap *Topics Activity* Homescreen Dock Shortcut
Package Name = com.google.android.adservices.api
Activity Name com.android.adservices.ui.settings.activities.TopicsActivity
Allow ad topics = off

3. One-Tap *Measurement Activity* Homescreen Dock Shortcut
Package Name = com.google.android.adservices.api
Activity Name = com.android.adservices.ui.settings.activities.MeasurementActivity
Allow ad measurement = on/off

In summary, it seems like Google sneaked in these new advertisement
switches in Android 13, which are on by default - and which I turned off
and which I created three new one-tap shortcuts to keep them turned off!
<https://i.postimg.cc/KvBw2tYT/adprivacyshortcuts01.jpg> AdPrivacy setting
<https://i.postimg.cc/DZ0Pw3dD/adprivacyshortcuts02.jpg> one-tap shortcut

I suggest others do the same.
--
The whole point of Usenet is to find people who know more than you do.
And to contribute to the overall tribal knowledge value of the newsgroup.
It's a domino effect where each of us helps the next person in the lineup.

Arno Welzel <usenet@arnowelzel.de> wrote

>> Do you have new "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
>> Settings > Google > Ads > Ad privacy >
>> Ad topics > (default is on)
>> App-suggested ads > (default is on)
>> Ad measurement > (default is on)
>
> Yes. Google Pixel 6a with Android 14 - but I can't remember exactly when
> these options got introduced exactly.

Thank you Arno for confirming these three new sneaky Google ad settings.
It's good to know that the Pixel and the Samsungs have the same settings.

The instant I saw them, I turned them off but I noticed none had any data.
<https://i.postimg.cc/KvBw2tYT/adprivacyshortcuts01.jpg> Ad privacy switches

I suspect the API is so new that no apps are taking advantage of them yet.

Even so, I instantly created one-tap shortcuts to ensure they stay off.
<https://i.postimg.cc/DZ0Pw3dD/adprivacyshortcuts02.jpg> One-tap shortcuts

And, just now, I deleted them from the user space but of course I have no
idea what implications that has for my privacy or workings of the phone.
<https://i.postimg.cc/xT0Q60YM/adprivacyshortcuts03.jpg> adb delete

C:\> adb shell pm list packages | findstr adservices
Result:
package:com.google.android.adservices.api
package:com.google.mainline.adservices

C:\> adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.google.mainline.adservices
Result:
Success

C:\> adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.google.android.adservices.api
Result:
Success

Note that in my whole Android experience, only once was I unable to
uninstall an app (even though my phone is unrootable) as shown here.
*Insular Island Shelter - Anyone know how to delete or sandbox*
*T-Mobile Diagnostics <com.tmobile.echolocate> for location privacy?*
<https://groups.google.com/g/comp.mobile.android/c/2M_eFmMVb00>
--
On Usenet, you can ask questions that nobody knows the answer to.
But you ask anyway - because maybe someone else is ahead of you.

VanguardLH <V@nguard.lh> wrote:
> Wally J <walterjones@invalid.nospam> wrote:
>
> > Do you have new "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
> > Settings > Google > Ads > Ad privacy >
>
> Is this the settings navpath for Pixel phones? I don't have a Google
> phone. Or is this available on some recent Android version?

> > Ad topics > (default is on)
> > App-suggested ads > (default is on)
> > Ad measurement > (default is on)

It's also on my Samsung phone with Android 13. IIRC, you have a much
older version.

> > Is Google adding sneaky new ad activities that were never there before?
[...]
> > Do you have these "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
>
> https://source.android.com/docs/core/ota/modular-system/adservices
>
> Introduced in Android 13. Hard to tell if users want this. The "spin"
> in the document makes it sound like something beneficial to users, but
> we've before seen marketspeak that was nasty in disguise.

IIRC, these were introduced with some kind of 'What's new'
notification. Of course many people skip these, so they don't
check/modify the settings. On my phone these three settings are off, but
I probably turned them off.

On 11/6/23 02:30, Wally J wrote:
> Arno Welzel <usenet@arnowelzel.de> wrote
>
>>> Do you have new "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
>>> Settings > Google > Ads > Ad privacy >
>>> Ad topics > (default is on)
>>> App-suggested ads > (default is on)
>>> Ad measurement > (default is on)
>>
>> Yes. Google Pixel 6a with Android 14 - but I can't remember exactly when
>> these options got introduced exactly.
>
> Thank you Arno for confirming these three new sneaky Google ad settings.
> It's good to know that the Pixel and the Samsungs have the same settings.
>
> The instant I saw them, I turned them off but I noticed none had any data.
> <https://i.postimg.cc/KvBw2tYT/adprivacyshortcuts01.jpg> Ad privacy switches
>
> I suspect the API is so new that no apps are taking advantage of them yet.

Google probably is, unfortunately. And I'd imagine they would start
adding more advertising in things like the lock screen, like what kindle
does.
--
user <candycane> is generated from /dev/urandom

On 06/11/2023 13:57, Frank Slootweg wrote:
> VanguardLH <V@nguard.lh> wrote:
>> Wally J <walterjones@invalid.nospam> wrote:
>>
>>> Do you have new "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
>>> Settings > Google > Ads > Ad privacy >
>>
>> Is this the settings navpath for Pixel phones? I don't have a Google
>> phone. Or is this available on some recent Android version?
>
>>> Ad topics > (default is on)
>>> App-suggested ads > (default is on)
>>> Ad measurement > (default is on)
>
> It's also on my Samsung phone with Android 13. IIRC, you have a much
> older version.
>
>>> Is Google adding sneaky new ad activities that were never there before?
> [...]
>>> Do you have these "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
>>
>> https://source.android.com/docs/core/ota/modular-system/adservices
>>
>> Introduced in Android 13. Hard to tell if users want this. The "spin"
>> in the document makes it sound like something beneficial to users, but
>> we've before seen marketspeak that was nasty in disguise.
>
> IIRC, these were introduced with some kind of 'What's new'
> notification. Of course many people skip these, so they don't
> check/modify the settings. On my phone these three settings are off, but
> I probably turned them off.

I don't know how many times I've turned something off only to find after
an update that it's been turned on again!

--

Jeff

Jeff Layman <Jeff@invalid.invalid> wrote:
[...]

> I don't know how many times I've turned something off only to find after
> an update that it's been turned on again!

That's what you get when you've been ifdef-ed in Google's code!

Jeff Layman <Jeff@invalid.invalid> wrote

>>>> Is Google adding sneaky new ad activities that were never there before?
>> [...]
>>>> Do you have these "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
>>>
>>> https://source.android.com/docs/core/ota/modular-system/adservices
>>>
>>> Introduced in Android 13. Hard to tell if users want this. The "spin"
>>> in the document makes it sound like something beneficial to users, but
>>> we've before seen marketspeak that was nasty in disguise.
>>
>> IIRC, these were introduced with some kind of 'What's new'
>> notification. Of course many people skip these, so they don't
>> check/modify the settings. On my phone these three settings are off, but
>> I probably turned them off.
>
> I don't know how many times I've turned something off only to find after
> an update that it's been turned on again!

I wiped out the entire new ad-sensing GUI from Google last night!
<https://i.postimg.cc/4dsD35Wq/adprivacyshortcuts04.jpg> New GUI is gone!

Both Jeff and Frank are correct that these are brand new in Android 13,
thanks to Vanguard's research and they affect all Androids thanks to Arno.

I think what matters most is how they're collecting data, as they seem to
be casting an extremely wide net based on your app actions on your phone.

Since I agree with Jeff Layton that the settings constantly come back, the
first thing I did was make one-tap shortcuts so that I can check them
periodically (where all my one-tap shortcuts go into the shortut dock).

But then I realized that you can do almost anything you want with adb.
So now they're completely wiped out.

Unless google puts the entire API back (which they might, via mainline), I
have completely and successfully wiped out the entire new Android 13 GUI.
<https://i.postimg.cc/4dsD35Wq/adprivacyshortcuts04.jpg> New GUI is gone!
--
I love that we (almost) never fail to get Android to do what _we_ want it
to do (by working together, as a team, where each of us helps the next).

candycanearter07 <no@thanks.net> wrote

>> I suspect the API is so new that no apps are taking advantage of them yet.
>
> Google probably is, unfortunately. And I'd imagine they would start
> adding more advertising in things like the lock screen, like what kindle
> does.

Woo hoo!

Thanks to the team, we have solved this problem, for now at least.
<https://i.postimg.cc/KvBw2tYT/adprivacyshortcuts01.jpg> Ad privacy switches
<https://i.postimg.cc/DZ0Pw3dD/adprivacyshortcuts02.jpg> One-tap shortcuts
<https://i.postimg.cc/xT0Q60YM/adprivacyshortcuts03.jpg> adb uninstall api
<https://i.postimg.cc/4dsD35Wq/adprivacyshortcuts04.jpg> New GUI is gone!

1. Vanguard showed these are sneaky new Android 13 ad sense settings.
2. Arno and Frank showed these are not only in my Samsung Android 13.
3. Jeff brought up the worry that they can get turned back on by Google.

So I solved that problem... in two ways others can easily leverage.
(Note that I'm different than most people in that's what I care about.)

Here are the two workarounds to the problem that I've personally tested:

A. Risk-averse folks can easily create these three one-tap shortcuts:
a. *Apps Activity*
[com.android.adservices.ui.settings.activities.AppsActivity]
b. *Topics Activity*
[com.android.adservices.ui.settings.activities.TopicsActivity]
c. *Measurement Activity*
[com.android.adservices.ui.settings.activities.MeasurementActivity]

B. Those, like me, less risk averse - can easily wipe out the entire GUI.
a. C:\> adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.google.mainline.adservices
b. C:\> adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.google.android.adservices.api

Voila!
Gone!
Poof!

Of course, now I have to keep track to see if Mainline puts the GUI back!
But the good news is we identified & solved the problem together multiple ways.

As always, if you know more than I do about this subject, please add value.
--
Usenet is an approach to find people who know more than you do, & then to
discuss problems with them such that you learn from their added knowledge.

On 11/7/2023 12:58 AM, Frank Slootweg wrote:

>> I don't know how many times I've turned something off only to find after
>> an update that it's been turned on again!
>
> That's what you get when you've been ifdef-ed in Google's code!

Isn't it clever Google tailored ads to us under the guise of "ad privacy?"

How is it "ad privacy" when they're looking at what each app is doing?

VanguardLH wrote on Mon, 6 Nov 2023 01:04:05 -0600 :

>> Do you have these "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
>
> https://source.android.com/docs/core/ota/modular-system/adservices
>
> Introduced in Android 13. Hard to tell if users want this. The "spin"
> in the document makes it sound like something beneficial to users, but
> we've before seen marketspeak that was nasty in disguise.

You're probably correct that this new ad tracking is new in Android 13.
The setup is not in my Android 12 Xiomi but is on my Android 14 Pixel.

On 11/6/23 13:59, Larry Wolff wrote:
> On 11/7/2023 12:58 AM, Frank Slootweg wrote:
>
>>> I don't know how many times I've turned something off only to find after
>>> an update that it's been turned on again!
>>
>> That's what you get when you've been ifdef-ed in Google's code!
>
> Isn't it clever Google tailored ads to us under the guise of "ad privacy?"
>
> How is it "ad privacy" when they're looking at what each app is doing?

It's all private to the user :)
--
user <candycane> is generated from /dev/urandom

On 11/6/23 13:55, Wally J wrote:
> As always, if you know more than I do about this subject, please add value.

Probably not, but I find it interesting.
--
user <candycane> is generated from /dev/urandom

On Mon, 6 Nov 2023 07:57:15 +0200, Wally J wrote:

> Do you have new "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
> Settings > Google > Ads > Ad privacy >
> Ad topics > (default is on)
> App-suggested ads > (default is on)
> Ad measurement > (default is on)

I have a Google Pixel 6 and I don't have that option.

Instellingen > Google > Advertenties

is showing me: 'Nieuwe advertentie-ID opvragen'

I kind of remember turning this (= ID) off somewhere in order to not get
personalized ads.

--
s|b

s|b <me@privacy.invalid> wrote:
> On Mon, 6 Nov 2023 07:57:15 +0200, Wally J wrote:
>
> > Do you have new "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
> > Settings > Google > Ads > Ad privacy >
> > Ad topics > (default is on)
> > App-suggested ads > (default is on)
> > Ad measurement > (default is on)
>
> I have a Google Pixel 6 and I don't have that option.
>
> Instellingen > Google > Advertenties
>
> is showing me: 'Nieuwe advertentie-ID opvragen'

The 'Ads' ('Advertenties') page probably has more than just 'Nieuwe
advertentie-ID opvragen'.

Mine (Samsung Galaxy A51, Andriod 13, English) has:

Ad privacy

Reset advertising ID (i.e. probably your 'Nieuwe advertentie-ID opvragen')

Delete advertising ID

The "advertising" switches Wally J is talking about are under the 'Ad
privacy' part (you have to tap on those words).

As these are *Google* settings, it's unlikely that your Google Pixel 6
doesn't have them.

Or are you perhaps not on Android 13 or not up-to-date on Google Play
system updates? My latest Google Play system update is of August 1,
2023. (On my phone: Settings -> Security and privacy -> Updates. Tap on
'Updates' to open it.)

> I kind of remember turning this (= ID) off somewhere in order to not get
> personalized ads.

Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> wrote

> Or are you perhaps not on Android 13 or not up-to-date on Google Play
> system updates? My latest Google Play system update is of August 1,
> 2023. (On my phone: Settings -> Security and privacy -> Updates. Tap on
> 'Updates' to open it.)

Frank is correct.

I will agree with anyone who says something sensible, where I have to agree
with Frank that if s|b doesn't see the new GUI, based on what Vanguard
kindly unearthed, either S|b isn't on Android 13+, or he somehow didn't get
the Project Mainline update that Frank is speaking of that has the package.

C:\> adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.google.mainline.adservices
C:\> adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.google.android.adservices.api

Voila! Poof! Gone!

As Frank alluded though, those deleted Android 13+ packages might come back
with the next update of the 'Google Play Services system update' (which
isn't the same as the 'Google Play Store' - which I know Frank knows - but
I need to be clear because Google calls virtually everything "Google Play"
due to Marketing always wanting to cash in on brand recognition names).
--
Note that I wipe out stuff on Android all the time, so I'm good to have on
this newsgroup because I take the risks most people here would never do.

On 11 Nov 2023 18:29:38 GMT, Frank Slootweg wrote:

> As these are *Google* settings, it's unlikely that your Google Pixel 6
> doesn't have them.

I have them now; they appeared a couple of days ago.
> Or are you perhaps not on Android 13 or not up-to-date on Google Play
> system updates? My latest Google Play system update is of August 1,
> 2023. (On my phone: Settings -> Security and privacy -> Updates. Tap on
> 'Updates' to open it.)

I'm on A14, so it must have been the system updates.

--
s|b

s|b <me@privacy.invalid> wrote

> I have them now; they appeared a couple of days ago.
> I'm on A14, so it must have been the system updates.

Thanks for letting us know as we each learn from each other every day.
And then we move the ball forward so the combined tribal knowledge grows.

They surprised me also, when they showed up in Android 13 because nobody
had warned me to look for them - and I hadn't looked until weeks later.

Luckily they're trivial to wipe out, which I did as soon as I had figured
out which Android "Activity" (which is a drawn page) was creating them.

From the Activity, I figured out the package, and that's all I needed.
<https://i.postimg.cc/KvBw2tYT/adprivacyshortcuts01.jpg> new ad switches
<https://i.postimg.cc/DZ0Pw3dD/adprivacyshortcuts02.jpg> One-tap shortcuts
<https://i.postimg.cc/xT0Q60YM/adprivacyshortcuts03.jpg> adb uninstall api
<https://i.postimg.cc/4dsD35Wq/adprivacyshortcuts04.jpg> New GUI is gone!

You don't need to wipe out both packages, but I did so as a test.
C:\> adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.google.mainline.adservices
C:\> adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.google.android.adservices.api

Or, you can turn them off manually; but - be advised - many (very many!)
switches that you turn off come back on when you either update or wipe
cache or clear the defaults - so it's better (IMHO) to wipe them out.

And be advised, you tend to change about a hundred default settings over
time, so if, oh, say, fifty of them reset - you have to find them all over.

Better to just blast them off the face of the earth, IMHO...

Of course, since Project Mainline (since renamed by Marketing to "Google
Play Services update" to take advantage of "Google Play" brand recognition)
updates most of Android 10+ monthly, you won't know explicitly if it's
updated.

Bear in mind almost nobody knows this fact (that all Android 10+ devices on
the Internet are auto-updated every month whether you know it or not).

I just checked in MuntashirAkon and they haven't come back (yet), although
in searching for "com.google.mainline.*" I found a telemetry package.
<com.google.mainline.telemetry>

Looking it up before I blast it away, it's been around since Android 12.
<https://cloud.google.com/service-infrastructure/docs/telemetry-reporting>

I'm not the first person to consider blowing it away...
<https://www.reddit.com/r/fossdroid/comments/uzp7ye/comgooglemainlinetelemetry_is_it_safe_to_remove/?rdt=56584>
"[It] is a set of metrics-related modules. Google Play uses the version
of the Telemetry module to determine [...] if updates are available for
metrics-related modules and which security patch version to display
to the end user. This module doesn't contain active code and has no
functionality on its own."

So I blew it away... I'll find out over time if it makes any difference.
C:\> adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.google.mainline.telemetry
--
Most people are afraid to empirically test their phone; I'm not.

Wally J wrote:

> Do you have new "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
> Settings > Google > Ads > Ad privacy >
> Ad topics > (default is on)
> App-suggested ads > (default is on)
> Ad measurement > (default is on)

Is your GAID some value other than all zeroes?

On Sun, 19 Nov 2023 09:32:00 +0000, Andy Burns wrote:
>
> Wally J wrote:
>
> > Do you have new "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
> > Settings > Google > Ads > Ad privacy >
> > Ad topics > (default is on)
> > App-suggested ads > (default is on)
> > Ad measurement > (default is on)
>
> Is your GAID some value other than all zeroes?

Mine looks like a GUID, and it's definitely not all zeroes.

I got to it by Settings > Google > Ads and then scrolling.

--
Stan Brown, Tehachapi, California, USA https://BrownMath.com/
Shikata ga nai...

Stan Brown <the_stan_brown@fastmail.fm> wrote

>>> Do you have new "advertising" switches recently inserted into your phone?
>>> Settings > Google > Ads > Ad privacy >
>>> Ad topics > (default is on)
>>> App-suggested ads > (default is on)
>>> Ad measurement > (default is on)
>>
>> Is your GAID some value other than all zeroes?
>
> Mine looks like a GUID, and it's definitely not all zeroes.
>
> I got to it by Settings > Google > Ads and then scrolling.

Each of us (Andy, Stan and I) have a _different_ Advertising ID setup.
Mine, for example, doesn't even exist (which is different than you guys).
<https://i.postimg.cc/x8rkRMpz/adid08.jpg> There is no Advertising ID now

Here's a summary of the progress in this thread, which isn't simple:

1. We already solved the problem by wiping out the new Android 13+ packages
C:\> adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.google.mainline.adservices
C:\> adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.google.android.adservices.api

2. Doing that brings the advertisement GUI back to the Android 12 setup.

3. However... you're talking about something _different_ with the Ad ID
I think, which can either be zeroed out or wiped out completely (AFAIK).

That is, the AD ID can be one of three values (as far as I'm aware):
a. Some GUID-looking thing (like Stan Brown has)
b. All zeroes (like Andy Burns likely has)
c. Non existent (like I have)

Here are some related images from my older phone (which was probably
Android 11 or 12 at the time) where I had to make a one-tap shortcut to
constantly reset the Advertising ID to all zeros (as Andy Burns noted).
<https://i.postimg.cc/0NhFk5J2/adid01.jpg> Doubletap to Reset AD ID
<https://i.postimg.cc/qq4MPH3W/adid02.jpg> Set doubletap to any Activity
<https://i.postimg.cc/t4YpKqZ2/adid03.jpg> Calling an Intent with a URI
<https://i.postimg.cc/X7vb5j84/adid04.jpg> Calling an Intent with a GUI
<https://i.postimg.cc/nhNNQvNN/adid07.jpg> Check Advertising ID
<https://i.postimg.cc/q77fJVdR/adid05.jpg> Reset Advertising ID
<https://i.postimg.cc/XvqM5CSd/adid06.jpg> Delete Advertising ID

But now I have the Advertising ID wiped out completely.
It simply does not exist. (AFAIK)

See screenshots (but bear in mind I wipe out everything so I'm different).
Samsung Galaxy A32-5G Android 13
Settings > Google > Ads > Get new advertising ID
<https://i.postimg.cc/x8rkRMpz/adid08.jpg> There is no Advertising ID now
--
Each of us on Usenet has a different risk tolerance where I blow away
packages all the time as you don't learn how it works until you break it.