Google Shows Ads On YouTube To Minors To Make Them Start Using Meta-Owned Instagram: Report

Google reportedly did not deny using the unknown category, but it said that it would conduct an investigation of its own into the matter.

Google and Meta hav allegedly struck a deal to craft and show ads that are targetted at minor users. A recent report by the Financial Times claimed that the tech giants were working on a marketing project to create ads that would run on YouTube and would be targetted at teenagers. This development comes on the heels of both companies claiming that they don't target ads at minor users. The aim of the ads was to bring new minor users to Meta-owned Instagram. 

The Financial Times reported that they had accessed some documents that revealed Google working on the marketing project with Meta, which was aimed at individuals between the ages of 13 and 17. If what the Financial Times has reported is true, then it straight up violates the Google Ad-serving Protections for Teens policy. The said policy states that the tech giant will disable ad personalisation and restrict sensitive ad categories for users who are below the age of 18.

Google Bypassed The Policy?

According to the Financial Times, Google bypassed the said policy by using a target demographic labeled 'unknown'. Google on its website has said that 'unknown' refers to "people whose age, gender, parental status, or household income we haven't identified." The report claimed that Google had thousands of data points on this category of users including location, app downloads, activity online, and more.

The report also suggested that the company was able to accurately identify younger users within the 'unknown' category. Allegedly, the company disabled the other age groups, leaving only the data from the 'unknown' category, which had a higher concentration of minors. According to unnamed sources cited in the publication, this was a method Google used to manipulate its internal system.

Google reportedly told the Financial Times, “We prohibit ads being personalised to people under 18, period. These policies go well beyond what is required and are supported by technical safeguards. We've confirmed that these safeguards worked properly here.”

Notably, the tech giant did not deny using the unknown category, but it said that it would conduct an investigation of its own into the matter.

On the other hand, Meta told Financial Times that Google's unknown targeting as an option is available to all advertisers. It added, “We have clear principles we adhere to when it comes to how we market our apps to teens on other platforms.”