Google Inc. (Nasdq:GOOG) has had its knuckles rapped by Canada's privacy commissioner for targeting a Canadian with sleep apnea with ads for sleep aid cures.
Google will face no consequences for breaching Canada's privacy laws, however. But Canadian advertisers who use Google's targeted advertising tools may want to take note that they may be breaching both Canada's and Google's own guidelines when it comes to cookie-based targeted advertising in certain areas that are supposed to be off limits, such as health, sexual orientation and race.
According to a release this morning (January 15), the Privacy Commissioner of Canada is satisfied with Google's assurances it is taking steps to address the problem.
"We are pleased Google is acting to address this problem," Interim Privacy Commissioner Chantal Bernier said in a press release.
"Most Canadians consider health information to be extremely sensitive. It is inappropriate for this type of information to be used in online behavioural advertising,"
Google tracks users' web searches to create profiles that advertisers using Google ad services can use to target ads to users, which explains why Canadians may have noticed that advertisements for products and services that they just happen to be interested in pop up, even when they are on unrelated websites.
Under Canadian privacy laws, cookie-based targeted advertising is allowed, except for matters of personal sensitivity, such as personal health.
Google also has its own policies against tailoring ads based on cookie trails related to things such as race, religion, sexual orientation or health.
But when a Canadian with sleep apnea began noticing he was being targeted with ads for sleep aids, he complained to the privacy commissioner, which investigated and found breaches of Canadian guidelines for targeted advertising.
Google said the problem is remarketing, in which advertisers using Google services target ads to users after they visit their own websites.
Google said some advertisers using its ad service don't comply with Google's own policies, which are supposed to prohibit profiling based on surfing habits that might identify race, religion, sexual orientation or health.
Canadian advertisers who use Google ad tools can learn more about Canada's privacy guidelines on the privacy commissioner's website.
