Wednesday, 2 April 2025
27.2 C
Singapore
30.6 C
Thailand
21.3 C
Indonesia
27.8 C
Philippines

Google Ads outage reveals competitor data, causing privacy concerns

The Google Ads outage exposed competitor data, raising privacy concerns. Advertisers are advised to exercise caution until the issue is resolved.

Google Ads is experiencing a significant outage that is disrupting various reporting tools and product management features. This glitch is causing major concerns for advertisers who rely on these tools to manage their campaigns and access critical performance data.

Impact on advertisers

This outage has made several essential features unavailable, including the Report Editor, Dashboards, and Saved Reports in the web interface. Additionally, pages related to Products, Product Groups, and Listing Groups across the web, API, and Google Ads Editor are affected.

A more alarming issue is the exposure of unrelated item IDs, product titles, and Merchant Centre information to competitors. This glitch raises serious privacy concerns, as advertisers can identify their direct competitors by viewing exposed product titles.

Google’s response

Ginny Marvin, Google Ads Liaison, acknowledged the problem on X (formerly Twitter). She assured users that Google is actively investigating the issue and will provide updates as more information becomes available. Advertisers are eager to see how quickly Google can resolve the outage and address the data exposure to mitigate the privacy breach fallout.

First report and bottom line

UK advertising agency Bidnamic on LinkedIn first reported the issue on July 30-31, 2024. Advertisers noticed they could see sensitive information about their competitors within their accounts.

In the meantime, advertisers are advised to exercise caution when accessing their Google Ads accounts. They should not act on any data until Google confirms that the issue has been resolved.

Hot this week

Google Pixel 9a arrives in Singapore this April for S$799

The Google Pixel 9a launches in Singapore in April 2025 with a Tensor G4 chip, 48MP camera, and seven years of updates, starting at S$799.

OpenAI secures US$40 billion in funding at US$300 billion valuation

OpenAI secures US$40B, reaching a US$300B valuation, to advance AI research and expand Stargate.

Apple has no plans for a small iPhone

Apple has no plans to make another iPhone Mini. Was it a missed opportunity, or was the compact iPhone just released at the wrong time?

Exabeam introduces Nova, an agentic AI that boosts cybersecurity operations

Exabeam unveils Nova, a proactive AI agent that boosts security team productivity and reduces incident investigation time by over 50%.

Chinese EV makers urged to expand globally despite tariff challenges

Chinese EV makers are urged to expand globally despite rising tariffs. Industry experts stress the need for overseas production and strategic partnerships.

Exabeam introduces Nova, an agentic AI that boosts cybersecurity operations

Exabeam unveils Nova, a proactive AI agent that boosts security team productivity and reduces incident investigation time by over 50%.

NUS partners with Microsoft Research Asia to advance AI research and nurture future tech talent

NUS and Microsoft Research Asia partner to boost AI research and develop future computing talent through a joint PhD and industry collaboration.

Tenable reveals privilege escalation flaw in Google Cloud Run

Tenable uncovers a privilege escalation flaw in Google Cloud Run, exposing risks linked to inherited permissions and service interdependencies.

Evento Seguro simplifies insurance access for event organisers in Brazil

Evento Seguro by Chubb makes event insurance easier for Brazilian organisers through a digital platform by Sympla and discovermarket.

Related Articles