1. snake oil - Noun
2. snake oil - Verb
communication (written or spoken) intended to deceive
(medicine) any of various liquids sold as medicine (as by a travelling medicine show) but medically worthless
Source: WordNetsnake-oil
Ad tech companies have sold (the snake oil) to clients, that they can derive insights about who users are and what they like, simply by observing what sites they visit or what webpages they look at. Source: Internet
A snake oil recipe from the 18th century, printed in Spain The use of snake oil long predates the 19th century, and it was never confined to the Americas. Source: Internet
A man sells snake oil in the outdoor market of Shangli in the Sichuan Province of China. Source: Internet
Marcia Angell stated that "alternative medicine" is "a new name for snake oil. Source: Internet
Despite advances in medical technology over the years, snake oil remains as useless but marketable as ever. Source: Internet
The snake oil peddler became a stock character in Western movies : a traveling "doctor" with dubious credentials, selling fake medicines with boisterous marketing hype, often supported by pseudo-scientific evidence. Source: Internet