I think most people are uncomfortable to admit how effective advertising really is on every person, so as a result, they think up multiple reasons to protest its existence, even if they don’t always make sense as a whole. My opinion on this apparent contradiction is that some who say advertising research is dangerous also believe it is inherently ineffective — that the intrusive advertising methods used now are as helpful as general surface-level research on customers — but it’s the treasure trove of personal information that is dangerous to us all, as it is readily available for abuse.