scam, phishing, fraud
click fraud prevention

Control the ads you see when you see them

4 min read 13 February 2023

Where can you control your ads

No matter which web page you are on, on any Google service, for example, Youtube or Search, you may have the possibility to hide advertisements. You can have control over the experience of ads that you find when you are on a website of Google services, or that are associated with Google, with My Ad Center and About this Ad you can change the settings that display ads, you can also do more actions, such as knowing who paid for an ad, blocking an ad, or even reporting an ad.

My Ad Center on ads:

In 2023, My Ad Center will be incorporated into all Google services, however this will be gradually, and you may not be able to see all the features in some of the services at first.

If you happen to see an ad on one of Google’s services, like YouTube or Search, you can access My Ad Center directly from that ad. Once you are in My Ad Center you can do the following:

  • Block an ad
  • Report an ad
  • Like an ad
  • Customize the ads you’ll see
  • Learn more about this advertiser
  • See what info was used to show you that ad

About this Ad:

When you’re on a Google partner website or app, you can access ads and open About this ad. Many Google partner sites use Google technology to display ads, as do some partner apps, however these ads are not owned and operated by Google. Also keep in mind that not all websites or apps use Google’s technology to display ads, as they use other advertising platforms to display ads. When you are in About this Ad option, you can do the following:

  • Block an ad
  • Report an ad
  • Learn more about this advertiser
  • See what info was used to show you that ad

Block an ad

You can always block an ad you don’t want by going to My Ad Center and About this Ad, and once the ad is blocked, Google will try to stop this ad from being shown on any other site in Google services, or on any partner sites or apps when you’re signed in to Google.

On Google:

On Google services like YouTube or Search, you can block ads by following these steps:

  • On the ad, select More.
  • Select Block ad.

On sites and apps that partner with Google:

You can follow these steps to block ads on Google partner sites or apps:

  • On the ad, select Close.
  • Select Stop seeing this ad.

Report an ad

Blocking an ad does not remove it, however, you can block any ad that you believe violates Google’s policies and standards. One of the priorities that Google has is to be able to maintain the safety of the ads for the users, however, many times some people manage to publish ads that are not right.

To report an ad:

  • You can select the More option found in Google ads, or in case the ad is on a Google partner site or app, you can select the Close option and then Why this ad?
  • Then you can select “Report ad”.
  • After that, in the option “Report ad” you can select “An ad violates other Google Ads policies.”
  • Once you select that option you can fill out the form. If the form has any fields that are pre-filled, do not edit them.
  • You can also provide additional details telling Google why you think this ad violates the policies. And you can even add the information of the website you think the ad comes from in case it is phishing.
  • Finally, you can select “Submit”.

Like an ad

If you like or are interested in what you see in an ad, you can click Like, even after this you may see more ads related to what you like. However, you should note that if you have personalized ads disabled or are logged out of your Google account, this feature of “Like” an ad is not available.

To like an ad on Google sites:

  • On the ad, select More.
  • Select Like ad.

Customize ad topics and brands

You can customize the ads that you want to be shown when you use Google services, you can choose which ads, themes, products or brands interest you to be shown in ads and which not to not appear.

 

You should be aware that this option will not block ads and they may still appear. Only Google will select what you want to see and what doesn’t interest you so much to avoid ads as much as possible.

On Google:

From My Ad Center and in the ads you see on Google, you can customize them when you need to.

  • On the ad, select More.
  • Then you can select See more or See fewer, depending on the topics or brands you want to see more or fewer ads about.

About this advertiser

Users who want to run ads must first go through a verification process, advertisers must provide legal documentation with their name and location, so that the ads can then be served on Google services or partner sites and apps.

On Google:

In case you want to have more information about this, you should do the following:

  • On the ad, select More.
  • Select About this advertiser.

On sites and apps that partner with Google:

To have more information in this case about the ads you are seeing, you can do the following:

  • On the ad, select Close.
  • Select Why this ad?

 

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