> Turning around and selling that information is not.
Both Meta and Google do not sell your data. No point of continuing if the basics are wrong. Both companies also make it very explicitly clear how your data is used.
With respect to Meta and Google, fair enough. They collect vast troves of data themselves and then use it to monetize content on their platforms. That's still enormously problematic as a) it makes them juicy targets for data breeches (hence Cambridge Analytica), b) it makes them key players in state surveillance activities, and c) they could always change their policies in the future if the financial incentives are right.
But critically, they are far from the only players in the space, and it's the entire ecosystem that's problematic.
But critically, they are far from the only players in the space, and it's the entire ecosystem that's problematic.