Instagram head Adam Mosseri has once again dismissed the persistent conspiracy theory that Meta, the parent company of Instagram, secretly listens to users through their phone microphones to target ads.

Speaking publicly on Wednesday, Mosseri addressed growing concerns over eerily accurate ad recommendations that many users believe stem from conversations they’ve had near their phones.

“Meta does not and has never used your microphone to record private conversations for ad targeting,” Mosseri clarified.

The theory  which has circulated for years  suggests that Meta covertly activates phone microphones to harvest personal conversations and use them to deliver hyper-targeted ads. However, both Meta and independent experts have consistently denied any technical evidence supporting the claim.

Mosseri pointed instead to the power of Meta’s advertising algorithms and human psychology. “You might have actually seen that ad before you had the conversation and not realized it,” he said. “We scroll quickly by ads, and sometimes some of that actually affects what you talk about later.”

Meta’s recommendation system relies heavily on data shared by advertisers, including users’ browsing behavior and interactions across apps and websites. This data-driven system, not secret audio recordings, is what fuels the uncanny relevance of ads, the company maintains.

Still, the perception of surveillance continues to unsettle users, highlighting ongoing concerns about data privacy and transparency in the age of algorithmic advertising.