About Facebook Ads
Let's talk about ads, together. Learn more about how data is used to show you ads without advertisers learning who you are, the controls you have to help determine what ads you get, why you are seeing a particular ad and more FAQs below.
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Understand what data is used to show you ads
We want you to know how data is used to show you ads without advertisers knowing who you are. Protecting people's privacy is central to how we've designed our ad system.
Your activity across Meta technologies
Ads are shown to you based on your activity across Meta technologies, such as:
Pages you and your friends like
Information from your Facebook and Instagram profile
Content you create or interact with across Facebook and Instagram
Places you check in using Facebook
Your activity with other businesses
When you share information like your phone number or email address with a business, they might add it to a customer list that can be matched to your Facebook profile. We can then try to match the ad to the most relevant audience. You may have shared your information with these businesses by:
Signing up for an email newsletter
Making purchases at retail stores
Signing up for a coupon or discount
Your activity on other websites and apps
Websites you visit or apps you use can send Facebook data directly by using our business tools (such as a pixel) to help us show you ads based on products or services you've looked at, such as a shirt on a clothing retailer's website. Examples of this include:
Viewing one of their web pages
Downloading their mobile app
Adding a product to a shopping cart or making a purchase
Your location
We use location data to show you ads from advertisers trying to reach people in or near a specific place. We get this information from sources such as:
Where you connect to the internet
Where you use your phone
Your location from your Facebook and Instagram profile
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You have a say in the ads you see
Learn more about what controls you have to help determine the ads you see.
From an ad directly, you can hide the ad, hide all ads from the advertiser, or let us know about a problem with the ad. Or, you can choose 'Why am I seeing this?' to get more context on why you might be seeing it.
Review and change the things that influence what ads you see in your ad preferences.
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Why you see a particular ad
Our ad system prioritizes what ad to show you based on what advertisers tell us their desired audience is, and we then match it to people who might be interested in that ad. This means we can show you relevant and useful ads without advertisers learning who you are. We don't sell any individual data that could identify you, like your name.
When an advertiser wants to reach...
Bike enthusiasts
Between 18 - 35 years old
Female
Within 20 miles of my store
Interested in bicycling
Mobile users
We show their ad to people like...
Facebook user
30 years old
Female
Menlo Park, CA
Interested in bicycling, movies, cooking
iPhone user, car shopper, gamer
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Get an inside look at how we show you ads
Protecting people's privacy is central to how we've designed our ad system. Let's take a look how you see ads.
Advertiser chooses a business goal
The advertiser chooses a goal, such as selling a product or increasing awareness of their brand name.
Advertiser identifies desired audience
The advertiser tells us their desired audience based on who they think will be the most interested.
Advertiser creates ad
The advertiser creates ads to show on Facebook, Instagram and other websites and mobile apps, and then uploads them using our ad management tools.
Facebook then shows you the ad
We take the advertiser's goal, desired audience and ad to show you ads that we think might be relevant to you, without the advertiser knowing who you are - or selling your data to the advertiser.
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FAQs
Does Facebook sell my data?
No, Facebook does not sell data to advertisers. This includes personal information like your name or the content of your Facebook posts.
Does Facebook listen to my conversations?
No, Facebook doesn't have access to the microphone unless you grant permission such as when you record a video to post on your feed.
Why do I see ads from Facebook on other apps and websites?
In addition to Facebook apps and services like Instagram, you could see ads served by Facebook on other websites, apps and connected TVs if they use our advertising products. The Meta Audience Network is a collection of publishers who support their businesses by displaying ads.
