TikTok Launches Ad Restrictions On Teen Profiles

TikTok recently made changes to how advertisers target teens and how users control their data. These updates aim to increase transparency and protect younger users.

The biggest change is in ad targeting. Advertisers can no longer use personalized data like interests and behavior to reach teens in the US. Instead, they can only target based on broad categories like location, language, and device type. This reduces the risk of advertisers exploiting teen data to influence their choices.

As per TikTok:

“Advertisers will now only be able to reach teens using a few broad targeting options, such as location, language, and device-related information.”

Similar to Meta's previous move, this change might significantly impact TikTok as roughly a quarter of its users are under 20. However, advertisers can still reach teens through broader trends that generally capture teen interests.

More Control Over Your Data

The update also gives users more control over their ad experience. They can now:

• Manage their "logged interests" to see more or fewer ads related to specific topics.

• Use the "Disconnect Advertisers" feature to prevent specific advertisers from using their off-TikTok data for ad targeting.

• Utilize the "Clear My Activity" function to remove any off-TikTok data associated with their account that ad partners might have shared.

Transparency Around AI-Generated Content

Transparency is vital for AI-generated content (AIGC) to prevent misunderstandings and manipulation. Without clear labels, users might be fooled by AIGC, mistaking it for genuine content and potentially falling victim to misinformation or deceptive marketing.

Additionally, undisclosed AIGC could be used to unethically influence users, especially teens, by tailoring content to sway their opinions or buying habits. By being transparent about AIGC, platforms like TikTok can build trust with users and create a space where people feel informed and empowered about the content they encounter.

Finally, TikTok is introducing new requirements for advertisers using AI-generated content (AIGC) in their ads.Advertisers will now have to disclose if an ad uses AI, and the ad itself will be labeled with an "AIGC" tag. This helps users understand if they're interacting with a real person or a digital persona.

While AI avatars have been popular in China, it remains to be seen how Western audiences will respond to them within the app.

These new data control and ad restriction updates for TikTok came into effect on July 1st.