I don't think this is at all shocking when there's no public awareness, no laws against it outside the EU, no consumer recourse, and no indication that anyone wants to fix it.
Europa is fighting for privacy at least since the 80s with the ratification of its data protection convention and one might believe it to be "an EU thing" because neither the USA nor China care much about it, but there are many other countries that agree and established such laws. Look no further than Argentina, Senegal or Singapore for examples in your region of the world. I believe it is of utmost importance that people understand this "protection of personal data" is not some annoying european law that forces ad-tech to make cookie-banners, it is literally the title of article 8 in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. It is, for us, a fundamental human right, and you should demand that it is one of yours, too.