The world of the internet is constantly changing and Facebook continues to make updates to stay at the forefront of the social media space. This past week, Facebook announced multiple advertising updates aimed to reduce discriminating ad targeting in an effort to make the social platform a safer place for users. Keep reading to learn more about these updates.

Removes Discriminatory Ad Targeting Options

This past week, Facebook removed ad targeting options that could be considered discriminatory. These targeting options (about 5,000 of them) could be used to exclude people based on ethnicity from property ads, which is in violation of federal laws. This comes as no shock as Facebook has continuously cut out features and cleaned up its platform in an effort to regain consumer trust after the massive data breach by Cambridge Analytica was revealed earlier this year.

According to a press release announcing the change:

“We’re committed to protecting people from discriminatory advertising on our platforms… While these options have been used in legitimate ways to reach people interested in a certain product or service, we think minimizing the risk of abuse is more important. This includes limiting the ability for advertisers to exclude audiences that relate to attributes such as ethnicity or religion.”

Non-Discrimination Policy Certification

Another way Facebook is combatting ad-targeting discrimination is by requiring all advertisers to complete a certification that educates them about their obligation to abide by Facebook’s non-discrimination policy. This policy and certification has been required by Facebook for the past year for all advertisers offering housing, employment or credit ads. This certification will be rolling out through the Ads Manager tool and must be completed in order to continue advertising on Facebook.

Check out what this certification looks like below.

Image via Facebook

We can continue to expect to see updates like this from Facebook as they continue their quest to regain consumer trust by expanding their data use policies.

Want to learn more about recent updates in digital marketing platforms? Check out our New This Week series.