All have one thing in common - does this ring any bells with you?:

"The following vacancy may be suitable for you.  If it is not then please
accept our apologies and update us as soon as possible with your current skills."

"Apologies if this email has reached you in error - your details have been generated on the basis of a database skill search"

"Apologies if this email isn't relevant, but as you have been registered as potentially having the right skills for this vacancy I thought I'd drop you a line."

WTF? Did IQs just drop sharply while I was away? Now, I'm not, never have been and, for the forseeable, never will be a part of the recruitment industry, but to me this method of trying to find suitable candidates is dumb, lazy and above all irritatiing.

Is this the same across all sectors of recruitment?

Does this method of finding candidates actually work? Does the machine gun/shit against a wall tactic prevail over any form of un-automated, personal communication?