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User confidence in Google’s products and services is essential. We want users to be empowered to make informed decisions about the ads that they see online.
Trust in advertisers on our platforms helps us deliver a smart and useful web experience for everyone. This means providing transparency about who our advertisers are, where they are located and information about their ad campaigns. In some countries, we may also be legally required to make certain information about ad campaigns publicly available to users of Google services.
Where information is disclosed
Ads Transparency Centre
For ads served on Google platforms, including Google Search and YouTube, Google makes available to all users a searchable repository of advertisers and the ads they have served over a certain time period via the Ads Transparency Centre. Users will be able to search for an advertiser, view information about the advertiser and the ads run by that advertiser during that period. This will enable users to learn more about an advertiser and report an ad if they believe it violates our policies.
Users can search for an advertiser via the Ads Transparency Centre by advertiser name or website name, with the option to filter their search results by serving region and date, for example.
Find out more by visiting the Ads Transparency Center here.
Political and election ads
Additional transparency information is available for political ads in the Ads Transparency Center for certain regions where Google's Political content policies apply.
Ads disclosures
Additionally, Google provides timely information about an advertiser via the ad and its disclosures.
Through 'My Ad Centre', users are already able to see information on why particular ads are being shown on Google Search, YouTube and Discover. Users will be able to see the name and location of verification for the advertiser behind a selected ad, which is information that was provided by the advertiser during Google’s advertiser verification programme.
How disclosures look on different ad formats
Search ads
On search ads, users are able to access advertiser verification information through the 3-dot icon 
on mobile.
Display ads
Display ads reach the vast majority of Internet users. In most cases, users are able to view additional information about an ad they see by clicking on 'Why this Ad?', accessed through the Ad Choices icon . You can also find it by clicking the X or the icon+ X.
YouTube
On YouTube, the 'My Ad Centre' disclosure can be viewed by clicking on the info icon or the 3-dot icon
Political and election ads
Additional disclosures are included in election ads run by verified election advertisers in regions where election ads verification is required. Learn more about Google's Political content policies.
What information is disclosed
Information about the advertiser
Google will display information about advertisers’ Google Ads or Display & Video 360 account in ads disclosures and the Ads Transparency Center. This includes advertisers who are verified through our advertiser verification programme, advertisers who are verified under the election ads verification programme and advertisers who have not yet undergone or completed the advertiser verification programme.
Completion of the verification programme requires an advertiser to complete a series of steps that includes providing basic information about their business and identity, submitting official documentation that shows their legal name, trademark name where applicable, address and/or submitting supporting documents related to their business operations. Learn more about advertiser verification.
For advertisers who are verified, Google will display the advertiser's legal name, or trademark name and location as provided by the advertiser via the verification programme. Verified advertisers will be labeled with a 'verified' badge in the Ads Transparency Centre and ads disclosures.
For advertisers who have not undergone verification, Google will display the advertiser’s payments profile name and location as provided by the advertiser and these advertisers will be labelled with an 'unverified' badge.
Information about the ad campaigns
In the Ads Transparency Center and in ad disclosures, Google will show advertiser information such as the name, location and the ads that they have served over a certain time period for all advertisers serving ads on Google platforms (including Google Search and YouTube). This also includes advertisers who are verified under the election ads verification programme and advertisers who have not yet been verified by the advertiser verification programme.
In order to comply with applicable laws, Google may also be required to disclose certain additional information about its advertisers and ad campaigns to users of its services, depending on the country.
View additional information disclosed by location
For ads served in certain countries or regions, Google will make the following additional information available in the Ads Transparency Centre.
- Targeting information
- Total number of recipients for each ad
- Subject matter label of the ad (at times Google-generated)
Google provides API access to data about ads served in the EEA in the Ads Transparency Centre. Access to and usage of the data in the Ads Transparency Centre is subject to the Ads Transparency Centre terms of service.