It’s just a commercial for Apple’s privacy protection features but in true Apple style, it’s a grand production. The new commercial is a horror fantasy about a young woman called Ellie, whose personal data is being sold at a public auction by Dubiou’s (aka data brokers). The bidding begins with her emails, “The ones she’s opened and read, wonderfully personal.” Lot number two is her chemist purchases. There are her browsing history and even her texts to her nana for sale.

Of course, Ellie has been provided with safety features from Apple, under its Mail Privacy Protection. As she turns on the “ask app not to track” features, those attending the auction house begin to vaporise.

Apple commented, “Over the past decade, a large and opaque industry has been amassing increasing amounts of personal data. A complex ecosystem of websites, apps, social media companies, data brokers and adtech firms track users online and offline, harvesting their personal data.

“This data is pieced together, shared, aggregated and used in real-time auctions, fueling a $227bn-a-year industry. This occurs every day as people go about their daily lives, often without their knowledge or permission.”