Online Ads That Follow You Are Getting New Scrutiny

Advertisers want to reach audiences who have expressed interest in their products, but consumers may consider the ads creepy

Kim Merrikin spent a lot of time online last year researching which car she wanted to buy. Soon, the communications manager at a Seattle nonprofit noticed car advertisements on the websites she visited, even for specific cars she had just researched. In December, she bought a new 2018 Subaru Crosstrek.

The ads didn’t stop.

“A week after I...