Google gives users greater control over advertising settings in GDPR push
Internet giant Google has introduced a range of features allowing users to hide what data is accessible to the service’s advertising platform as the EU’s General Data Protection Regulations starts to bite.
With the new features, users will be able to review, modify and delete the data Google has amassed on them through the company’s various search and location services.
A sample of Google’s privacy settings
Philippe de Lurand Pierre-Paul, product manager at Google, said in a blog post: “The new Ad Settings shows all the different factors that determine how ads are tailored to you in one view.
“This way, it’s easier for you to see them at a glance, learn more about why you see ads related to these topics, and decide if there are any you want to remove.”
de Lurand Pierre-Paul points out however turning off the data collection will affect users’ experiences and advertiser targeting: “This information helps make ads more relevant and useful to you. However, in the new Ad Settings, if you no longer want us to tailor your ads based on one of these factors you can choose to turn it off.
“Turning off a factor means you’ll no longer receive tailored ads related to it across our services, and on websites and apps that partner with us to show ads, as long as you’re signed in to your Google Account. The ads you see can still be based on general factors, like the subject of what you’re looking at or the time of day, or any other factor that is still turned on.”
As part of the changes, Google will also make the ‘Why This Ad’ feature more prominent, allowing users to see why they have been targeted by a particular campaign.
Parent company Alphabet’s revenues last quarter were $US 24.6bn. Of that, 21.4bn came from Google’s advertising operations.
