Google has updated its advertising policies to restrict ads for third-party tech support providers.
This decision was made, Google says, due to a rise in misleading ads from third-parties offering technical support services.
“One of our top priorities is to maintain a healthy advertising ecosystem, and that means protecting people from misleading, inappropriate and harmful ads… When we see an increase in misleading or predatory behaviors in specific categories, we take additional action.”
Restricting ads does not mean an outright ban on ads in this category. It means Google will put measures in place to help ensure only legitimate service providers are running ads.
In the coming months, Google Ads will roll out a verification program that providers of third-party tech support services will be required to complete.
Google Ads has similar measures in place for addiction treatment centers, which now have to be verified by an outside firm before being able to run ads.
Addition treatment centers also have to pay upfront for the verification, and then pay an additional annual fee in order to maintain their verified status.
That’s just an example of what third-party tech support providers might expect in terms of a verification program.
Google has not yet provided any specific details, though I expect it will before the verification program rolls out.
While this may be a considerable inconvenience to legitimate providers of third-party tech support services, at least Google hasn’t gone the route of banning ads as it has done for payday loans and bail bonds services.
