The EU fines Meta over $4 million over use of data for targeted ads, the US bans TikTok on government issued phones over data security issues, and Twitter relaxes ban on political ads in the US, allowing cause-based advertising again.
Meta News
What happened:
Back in 2018, the European Union passed General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), a data privacy law that, in part, aims to restrict companies from collecting information about users without their prior consent.
Last week, the EU ruled that Meta placing the legal consent for personalised ads within its TOS was essentially forcing people to accept, which violates GDPR. Meta says they believe they’re in compliance with the laws and are going to appeal the ruling and the fines.
What this means for you + clients:
The ruling doesn’t prevent personalised advertising on their platforms but it does relate to the legal basis that Meta uses when offering that advertising. Meta has three months to outline how it will comply with the ruling which may look like using a different legal basis or explicitly asking people if they want their data to be used in ads or not. If you run ads on Facebook or Instagram, this ruling may impact your ads in the future. Stay tuned.
TikTok News
What happened:
The US bans TikTok on federally managed devices over fear that the Chinese government could use the app to spy on Americans and censor content.
What this means for you + clients:
There’s been talk of banning TikTok for years but I think we’re in too deep for an outright ban. Forbes says it best, “In reality, until there is clear evidence of ByteDance misusing American user data—and the federal government enacts laws to prevent companies from doing so—TikTok is unlikely to be banned in the U.S.”
Twitter News
What happened:
Twitter announced they’ll be relaxing the ban on political ads in the US. In 2019, Twitter had banned some forms of political advertising on the app but now:
Twitter says they plan to align their advertising policies with that of TV and other media outlets.
What this means for you + clients:
Nothing really. If you’re a politician, you’re in luck! If you’re not a politician, you’ll probably start seeing more political ads. Ugh.
In other news…
🎯 Meta introduces more limits on targeting teens
🤚 TikTok Creators will be able to limit content to an adult-only audience
🧭 Instagram will be updating its Navigation menu in February
❓ See why certain TikTok videos are getting recommended to you