Can Users Control Online Behavioral Advertising Effectively?

Online behavioral advertising (OBA) is the increasingly widespread practice of targeting users with specific online ads on the basis of a user´s previous online behavior. Advertisers pay a premium for targeted ads because users are more likely to make purchases after viewing relevant ads. On the other hand, whereas some users might appreciate seeing more relevant advertisements, many say they find targeted advertising creepy and don´t like the idea of companies tracking their online activities. Many tools empower users to control whether and when they´re tracked for behavioral advertising; however, whether users can effectively control tracking and OBA using these tools is unclear.