# Advertising Compliance & Privacy Reference ## Google Ads Policies ### Enforcement System: Three-Strike Policy | Strike | Consequence | Duration | |--------|------------|----------| | Strike 1 | 90-day probation | Warning period | | Strike 2 | 90-day restriction | Limited functionality | | Strike 3 | Permanent suspension | Account terminated | ### Prohibited Content (Immediate Disapproval) - Counterfeit goods - Dangerous products or services - Dishonest behavior enablement - Inappropriate content (hate speech, violence, shocking content) ### Restricted Categories (Certification Required) | Category | Requirement | |----------|-------------| | Online pharmacies | Google certification + LegitScript | | Telemedicine | Platform certification | | Health insurance | Certification in applicable regions | | Gambling | State/country-specific licensing | | Political ads | Identity verification + disclosures | | Cryptocurrency | Certification required | | Financial services | Clear APR/fee/terms disclosures | | Alcohol | Age-gating + regional restrictions | | Adult content | Age restriction + limited placements | ### Common Disapprovals - Misleading claims (superlatives without evidence) - Missing landing page content (404s, under construction) - Destination mismatch (ad promise ≠ landing page) - Prohibited content in ad text - Trademark infringement - Restricted healthcare claims ### Recommendations Tab: What to Accept/Reject **Safe to accept:** - Optimized ad rotation - Relevant extensions - Fix disapproved ads **Usually reject:** - "Raise your budget" - "Add broad match keywords" - "Add new keywords" (auto-suggested) - Auto-created RSAs - Bidding strategy switches - Turn off Optimization Score auto-apply --- ## Meta Ads Policies ### Special Ad Categories (Restricted Targeting) | Category | Restrictions | |----------|-------------| | Housing | No ZIP code, age must be 18-65+, no lookalike | | Employment | Same restrictions as Housing | | Credit | Same restrictions as Housing | | **Financial Products** | **New Jan 2025**, enforced as Special Category | All Special Ad Categories: - Cannot target by age (18-65+ only range) - Cannot target by ZIP code / postal code - Cannot use Lookalike Audiences - Must declare category before campaign creation ### Enforcement Scale - Over 1.3 billion ads rejected or removed in 2024 - Account restrictions escalate with repeated violations - Appeal process available but slow ### Detailed Targeting Exclusions (Removed) - Removed from new ad sets: March 31, 2025 - Removed from boosted posts: June 10, 2025 - Existing campaigns with old exclusions stopped: January 15, 2026 - Meta cites 22.6% lower median cost per conversion without exclusions ### Content Rules - No misleading health/weight loss claims - Before/after images: heavily restricted - Cryptocurrency: certification required - Political ads: "Paid for by" disclosure required - Personal attributes: cannot imply user has specific condition - Sensational content: no clickbait tactics --- ## LinkedIn Ads Policies ### Restricted Industries - Gambling and betting - Tobacco and related products - Weapons and ammunition - Adult content - Multi-level marketing - Cryptocurrency (restricted, not prohibited) ### Professional Standards - B2B focus expected; casual/misleading content penalized - Thought Leader Ads must come from genuine employees - Lead Gen Forms must have clear privacy policy - Job postings must comply with employment laws --- ## TikTok Ads Policies ### Platform Requirements - Content must feel native (not overly polished/corporate) - Audio required (TikTok is sound-on) - Must comply with music licensing for commercial use - Creator content (Spark Ads) requires creator approval ### Restricted Categories - Age-restricted products (alcohol, gambling): geo-gated - Health claims: evidence required - Financial products: risk disclosures required - Political ads: banned in many markets ### TikTok Shop Policies - Products must meet marketplace standards - No counterfeit or restricted goods - Seller verification required - Available in 11 countries (US, UK, key Asian/European markets) --- ## Microsoft Ads Policies ### Import Considerations - Google Ads policy approvals don't transfer - Microsoft has separate review process - Some Google-approved ads may be disapproved on Microsoft - Bing audience skews older/more conservative; creative should match ### Copilot Placement Policies - Ads in Copilot must be clearly labeled - Copilot Checkout (Jan 2026): commerce within conversations - Higher quality standards for conversational context --- ## Privacy Regulations (February 2026) ### Global Privacy Landscape | Regulation | Region | Status | Key Requirement | |-----------|--------|--------|-----------------| | GDPR | EU/EEA | Active | Consent before tracking; data minimization | | UK GDPR | UK | Active | Similar to EU GDPR | | CCPA/CPRA | California | Active | Right to opt out; mandatory audits | | 20 State Laws | US (various) | Active Jan 2026 | Indiana, Kentucky, Rhode Island newest | | LGPD | Brazil | Active | Consent and transparency | | PIPL | China | Active | Consent and data localization | ### Key Privacy Facts (2026) **Privacy Sandbox is DEAD:** - Google officially retired October 2025 - Third-party cookies remain in Chrome (~67% browser share) - Safari and Firefox already block third-party cookies - No separate consent prompt coming **iOS App Tracking Transparency (ATT):** - Average opt-in rate: ~35% (Q2 2025, up from 29% in 2022) - Gaming highest: 37-50% - Education lowest: 7-14% - Apps with <30% opt-in lose 58% of ad revenue on average **Consent Mode v2 (Mandatory for EU/EEA):** - Enforcement tightened July 2025 - Without: 90-95% metric drops - Advanced mode recovers 30-50% of lost conversions - ~31% of users globally accept tracking cookies **US State Privacy:** - 20 state laws active by January 2026 - Texas AG: $1.4 billion settlement for tracking violations - California CPPA: mandatory cybersecurity audits + data processing risk assessments - Server-side tracking now architecturally necessary for compliance ### Compliance Decision Tree ``` IF serving_region INCLUDES "EU/EEA": → Consent Mode v2 = MANDATORY → Cookie consent banner = MANDATORY → Data Processing Agreement = MANDATORY → Enhanced Conversions with consent = RECOMMENDED IF serving_region INCLUDES "California": → CCPA/CPRA compliance = MANDATORY → "Do Not Sell" link = MANDATORY → Data processing risk assessment = MANDATORY (2026) IF serving_region INCLUDES any US state: → Check specific state law requirements → 20 states have active laws as of Jan 2026 FOR ALL REGIONS: → Server-side tracking = RECOMMENDED (bypasses most client-side issues) → First-party data strategy = ESSENTIAL → Privacy policy on landing pages = MANDATORY ``` ### Healthcare-Specific Compliance | Rule | Enforcement | |------|-------------| | No remarketing/retargeting for health services | Google policy: account suspension risk | | No targeting by health conditions | Google, Meta, all platforms | | Online pharmacy certification | Google: LegitScript required | | Telemedicine certification | Google: platform certification | | HIPAA considerations | US: no PHI in tracking pixels | | Use contextual targeting | Instead of audience targeting | ### Financial Services Compliance | Rule | Enforcement | |------|-------------| | Clear APR/fee/terms disclosures | Google, Meta: ad disapproval | | Lending certification | Google: account level | | Crypto certification | Google: account level | | Risk disclosures | All platforms | | Financial Products Special Category | Meta (Jan 2025): restricted targeting | | No misleading income claims | All platforms: account suspension | --- ## 2025-2026 Changes ### Microsoft Consent Mode Deadline - **May 5, 2025**: Consent Mode required for all campaigns targeting EEA, UK, and Switzerland - Without implementation, conversion tracking in these regions will be severely degraded ### Meta Link Clicks Redefinition (Feb 2025) - "Link clicks" metric now **excludes social engagement clicks** (likes, comments, shares) - Only counts clicks that navigate away from Meta surfaces - Affects historical benchmarking: year-over-year comparisons will show apparent drops - Use "outbound clicks" or "landing page views" for continuity ### Meta Shops Native Checkout Phase-Out (June-August 2025) - Native in-app checkout phased out between June and August 2025 - All checkout flows now redirect to the advertiser's website - Update any campaigns relying on Shops checkout conversion events ### Google Call Ads Deprecation - **February 2026**: No new call-only ad creation permitted - **February 2027**: Existing call ads stop serving entirely - **Migration path**: Use call assets (extensions) within Responsive Search Ads (RSAs) ### Apple Ads Rebrand (April 2025) - "Apple Search Ads" officially renamed to **"Apple Ads"** - Reflects expanded inventory beyond App Store search (Today tab, Search tab, product pages) - Update all client-facing reports and documentation to use new branding ### EU Sponsored Messaging: LinkedIn (Discontinued Jan 2022) - Message Ads and Conversation Ads **cannot be delivered to EU members** since January 2022 - LinkedIn removed EU targeting for these formats due to ePrivacy Directive - **Never recommend Message/Conversation Ads for EU-targeting campaigns** - Use alternative formats: Sponsored Content, Lead Gen Forms, or InMail via Sales Navigator ### Google Enhanced CPC (ECPC): Fully Deprecated (March 2025) - ECPC bidding strategy **fully removed** as of March 2025 - Existing ECPC campaigns auto-migrated to Manual CPC (no bid adjustments) - Recommended migration: Target CPA or Maximize Conversions with optional target ### Google Rule-Based Attribution Models (Deprecated) - First click, linear, time decay, and position-based attribution models all removed - All campaigns using these models were **auto-upgraded to Data-Driven Attribution (DDA)** - DDA is now the only multi-touch attribution option in Google Ads - Audit note: flag any client reports still referencing legacy attribution models