In alignment with the changes in EU privacy laws and broader
industry shifts, TikTok is updating its data usage policies. These updates
mainly revolve around data that TikTok collects from younger users on its
platform.
More specifically, TikTok has developed these policy updates
in line with the new EU Digital Services Act (DSA) that states new laws around the
use of data to target young users. The DSA is going to be implemented in the
coming months. “Starting today, we're restricting the types of data that can be
used to show ads to teens by region,” says TikTok.
TikTok’s revised ad policy includes the following:
- Removal of personalized ads on TikTok based on off-app activities for users aged 13 to 15 in the US.
- Removal of personalized ads on TikTok based on off-app activities for users aged 13 to 17 in the European Economic Area, United Kingdom, and Switzerland
Considering that two-thirds of teens in the US are users of TikTok, the changes in TikTok’s data usage policies will have a considerable impact on how advertisers run their campaigns on the platform to target the population.
Additionally, TikTok has developed new data control and
transparency elements, including a new ‘clear my activity’ feature, content
transparency labels, and ‘limited data use’ feature.
Using the ‘clear my activity’ option, users will be able to
clear their activity details including interactions with advertising partners
and businesses that may have obtained their information for the purpose of
showing them personalized ads.
Content transparency labels will clarify context of brand
partnerships in an improved way, using labels like "ad/sponsored," "paid
partnership," and "promotional content".
Lastly, the ‘limited data use’ option will provide businesses with more control over how their event data is used in TikTok’s systems. The limited data use functionality will be available in California, Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut, and Utah, according to TikTok.
