Google ads linked to searches on health issues violate Canadian privacy law, according to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.
The investigation by the privacy watchdog was prompted by a complaint from a man with sleep apnea. After searching online for medical devices to treat the disorder, he was “followed” by ads for the devices as he visited unrelated websites. Testing by Privacy Commissioner confirmed the complainant’s experience.
Under PIPEDA, online behaviourial advertising must be limited to non-sensitive information, “avoiding sensitive information such as medical or health information.”
Google’s own privacy policy states that, when tailored ads are shown, the company will not associate a cookie or other identifiers with sensitive categories, such as race, relation, sexual orientation or health.
The search giant said the problem relates to “remarketing campaigns,” which allow an advertiser to target ads to recent visitors to their site. Google acknowledged that some advertisers don’t comply with the company’s policy against ads relating to sensitive issues.
In response to the investigation, Google has agreed to take steps to stop the privacy-intrusive ads, including increased monitoring of remarking campaigns and more training to its own staff. Google has agreed to implement the recommendations by June.
“We are pleased Google is acting to address this problem,” said interim Privacy Commission Chantal Bernier, in a 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.”
