A distributed recommendation system and method provides greater privacy for user's private data. Tasks of a recommendation system are distributed between wireless devices and network servers, to protect end users privacy. Greater privacy for context-sensitive, adaptive, user interfaces is provided for Internet service usage by wireless devices. The user's wireless device sends a current context-activity pair to a network server in response to either the user's selection of an activity or automatically, while protecting the user's privacy. The user's wireless device includes a service history log. The activities stored in the service history log include past recommendations made by the network server, past services used, prestored service preferences, and special requested service requirements. Context-activity pair information sent to the server protects user privacy and can include any combination of these activities. The server responds to an appropriate recommendation. New recommendations to users are made in response to context-activity pairs submitted by their wireless devices.