Google and Meta reportedly teamed up for ads targeting young teens

Aug 9, 2024

Google and Meta allegedly collaborated on ads targeting young teens despite restrictions, using a loophole, according to the Financial Times.

Google and Meta reportedly teamed up for ads targeting young teens

: Google and Meta worked together to roll out ads targeting young teens, even though it violated Google's policies. They used a loophole to target users labeled as 'unknown,' who were primarily minors. The campaign, initially launched in Canada, was extended to the US before being shut down following an investigation by Google.

According to the Financial Times, Google collaborated with Meta to launch ads targeting teens, ages 13 to 17, even though it goes against Google's advertising rules. The companies took advantage of a loophole by targeting a group of users labeled 'unknown,' identified to largely consist of minors.

This campaign was initially run in Canada between February and April with the help of media agency Spark Foundry, and later extended to the US in May. Plans were in place to expand this campaign to other regions and additional Meta apps.

Following an inquiry from the Times, Google investigated and terminated the project, reiterating its policy against personalized ads for users under 18. Although Google did not directly deny using the loophole, it promised to reinforce its policies with sales representatives to prevent such breaches.