Personalised Advertising: Overdue Regulation

• vzbv calls for new EU legislation banning tracking and profiling for advertising
• report: tracking and profiling for advertising purposes lead to manipulation, discrimination and loss of trust
• Regulation through the GDPR and the DSA is insufficient

Tracking and profiling for advertising purposes present significant risks to consumers and society. This is demonstrated by a report commissioned by the Federation of German Consumer Organisations (vzbv). The advertising industry’s practice of categorising and influencing individuals based on their preferences, behaviours and vulnerabilities leads to manipulation, discrimination and a loss of trust. vzbv calls on the European Commission to ban tracking and profiling for advertising purposes and ensure the protection of digital fundamental rights.

“Every click on the internet is tracked because it supposedly reveals something about us: our preferences, desires and interests. The uncontrolled data collection by the advertising industry poses great risks to consumers and society,” says Michaela Schröder, Head of Consumer Policy at vzbv. “Consumers are powerless against the practices of the advertising industry. Existing laws are not sufficient. A ban on tracking and profiling is the only way to ensure meaningful consumer protection,” Schröder states.

Ban profiling for advertising purposes

A report by Prof. Dr. Max von Grafenstein (UdK Berlin, Einstein Center Digital Future) and lawyer Dr. Nina Elisabeth Herbort, commissioned by vzbv, reveals: the digital advertising ecosystem is opaque and complex. Users have little control over their data. The uncontrolled data collection by the advertising industry endangers data protection, democracy and users’ trust in providers and regulatory frameworks. 

From vzbv’s perspective, existing laws are insufficient to regulate tracking and profiling for advertising purposes. The European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Digital Services Act (DSA) do not provide adequate responses to the problems caused by personalised advertising.

“Profiling endangers privacy protection, harms IT security, enables manipulation and fosters discrimination. The European Commission must act urgently to comprehensively protect consumers from the risks of personalised advertising”, says Schröder. “Consumers should be able to use the internet and their smartphones without their data being collected for advertising purposes.”

Categorisation based on vulnerabilities

Advertising companies track users’ behaviour across websites and apps, as well as their movements in the physical world. They collect personal data, such as click behaviour or location data, and use it for targeted advertising.

Based on the collected data, individual behaviour patterns and vulnerabilities, consumers are categorised into groups with labels like “weight loss”, “fragile seniors”, or “speculative investments”. vzbv argues that this enables manipulation and discrimination.

Majority opposes personalised advertising

A representative forsa survey commissioned by vzbv in 2024 shows: Seven out of ten respondents (70 per cent) agree that companies should not be allowed to create profiles based on personal data to deliver personalised advertising. 

Methodology

Representative phone survey (11.03. to 28.03.2024) conducted by forsa on behalf of vzbv. Sample: 1,500 individuals aged 14 and older. Statistical margin of error: max. ± 3 percentage points.