Google updated its Circumventing systems policy to add a new section for Advertiser verification. In short, and as Google wrote, "Providing false or fraudulent information as part of our Advertiser verification programs is not allowed."
This new section was added over here and read:
Circumventing systems: Advertiser verification:Not allowed Providing false or fraudulent information as part of our Advertiser verification programs is not allowed.
Examples (non-exhaustive):
If you violate Google Ads policies or provide false or fraudulent information during the verification program, you will not be verified or will lose your verified status, and your account will be suspended.
Why this isn’t allowed:
- It’s harmful to people: When advertisers hide their true identity, users can’t make informed choices to avoid scams, misleading information, and dangerous products or services.
- It damages the overall advertising ecosystem: When people can’t trust the verification status of advertisers, they become less likely to trust any ads, which hurts all advertisers. Google Ads wants to maintain a safe and transparent ecosystem for everyone.
- It has been used to attempt to evade policy enforcement: Everyone needs to follow the same Google Ads policies. Attempting to use false or fraudulent identity information to get around those policies is not allowed.
Best practices (non-exhaustive):
- Submit authentic government documents: If you’re asked to submit a government-issued photo ID, registration or license, ensure the information is accurate and unmodified.
- Submit authentic business documents: If you’re asked to submit business documents, such as information about your business relationships or the provider of the goods or services, ensure the information is accurate, and only hide or edit proprietary or personal information.
Tips for submitting your appeal:
- Explain your situation: Provide details about the form of identity you used as part of the advertiser verification program. If there’s been a mistake, explain what happened.
Google said, "This clarification reinforces our existing policy that submitting false or fraudulent information through our verification programs is a direct violation of the Circumventing Systems policy and will result in account suspension. There is no change to enforcement of this policy."
Google also added another line to the overall policy that says, "Using appropriate click trackers and redirecting users is okay as long as you’re not doing these things to try to hide that you’re showing or doing anything that goes against Google Ads' policies."
You can compare the live page to the archived version if you want to see all the changes.
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