Ad badging, transparency, and reporting

Google’s "About this ad" identifies your content as an ad, gives transparency information about your advertiser, and gives them a way to report illegal content. This feature is turned on by default when you create a new advertiser. When turned on, "About this ad" is automatically added to all ads when they're shown on the web.

You're free to opt out of using "About this ad". If you opt out, you must use an alternative provider’s solution that enables compliance with Google’s Online Behavioral Advertising (OBA) policy as well as other badging, transparency and reporting requirements as required by law.

Turn on ad badging, transparency, and reporting

When you turn on on ad badging, transparency, and reporting, Display & Video 360 adds a label that identifies your content as an ad, advertiser transparency information, and a means to report illegal content.

1. Go to Display & Video 360.
2. Open your advertiser.
3. In the left menu, click Advertiser settings, then Basic details.
4. Under Authorizations, find Ad badging, transparency, and reporting. Check the "Use Google's About this ad feature..." checkbox.
5. Click Save. "About this ad" is automatically added to your ads when they're shown on the web.

 On display ads, you can click the AdChoices icon . On YouTube, you can click Info or More options. These ad badges don't appear in ad previews. They're only shown when your ad serves.

Turn off ad badging, transparency, and reporting

If you use an alternative compliance solution, you can review the requirements and confirm that your solution meets them to turn off ad badging, transparency and reporting.

Requirements for ads served through Display & Video 360:

• Ads must meet regulatory requirements in the locations your ads will serve.
• Ads must be Online Behavioral Advertising (OBA) compliant, per your contract with Google Marketing Platform.
• In the European Economic Area (EEA), ads must show required regulatory transparency information and include a mechanism for users to report illegal content. Reports of illegal content in ads must be reported back to Google using the appropriate form.

If your ad badging solution meets these requirements, you can turn off Google's "About this ad" by following these steps.

1. Go to Display & Video 360.
2. Open your advertiser.
3. In the left menu, click Advertiser settings, then Basic details.
4. Under Authorizations, find Ad badging, transparency, and reporting.
5. Uncheck the "Use Google's About this ad feature..." checkbox. The requirements for turning off this feature are shown.
6. Review the requirements and confirm that your alternative compliance solution meets them. If it does, check the "I confirm..." checkbox.
7. Click Save.

Prevent creative misalignment

When ad badging, transparency, and reporting is turned on, 1x1 pixels may cause your creatives to be pushed down in the ad slots where they're displayed.

To avoid this misalignment: 

• Don't use image event tags in Campaign Manager 360. Script event tags are OK.
• If there are 1x1 pixels in your creatives' HTML, try adding style="display:none" to your 1x1 pixel's HTML to make the pixel invisible. Make sure to verify your pixels are still capturing data accurately after you've applied this style.