TikTok will soon make personalized ads mandatory, which means you will start receiving ads in the app based on the type of content you interact with, whether you want to or not.
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The popular short-video app currently has a setting that lets users choose whether to see ads based on their activity within the app. However, now when opening the platform, users are presented with the following notification: “Starting April 15, your settings will change and the ads you see may start to be based on what you do on TikTok.”
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A TikTok spokesperson said the popular platform is “committed” to respecting its users’ privacy. The spokesperson added: “We will continue to be transparent about our data privacy practices and help users understand their privacy choices in the Safety Center.”
Users will still be able to control whether TikTok personalizes ads based on data pulled from other apps and sites. The change to TikTok’s privacy settings mirrors how ads work on many social media sites, including Twitter, Facebook , and Instagram. Users can opt out of ads that are personalized based on tracking across different sites, but not from personalization based on activity within the sites themselves.
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As The Verge, the change is likely related to Apple’s upcoming release of iOS 14, which requires developers to get users’ permission to track their data in apps for targeted ads. Any apps that don’t ask for permission will risk being suspended or removed from the App Store. By making personalized ads mandatory, TikTok will be able to target advertising to some extent, as most people opt out of in-app tracking.
