It can sometimes feel like Facebook is spying on you by showing ads for things you’ve searched for or talked about in other apps and services. However, there are a few different ways that Facebook is able to target you with such specific ads without directly accessing your activity on other sites.
Facebook Pixels and Conversions API
Many websites and apps use Facebook Pixels or Conversions API to track activity like purchases or sign ups. This allows them to measure how well their Facebook ads are performing. However, it also allows Facebook to receive information about your activity on those sites.
For example, if you search for vacuum cleaners on Google and click on an ad for a vacuum website that uses Facebook Pixels, the website can send information about your visit back to Facebook. Facebook can then use that information to determine you may be interested in buying a vacuum and show you vacuum ads on Facebook.
How Facebook Pixels Work
A Facebook Pixel is a small piece of code that websites add to their pages to track visits, purchases, and other events. The Facebook pixel code sends information about those actions back to Facebook so it can be used for ad targeting and measurement.
Some of the types of information Facebook Pixels pass back include:
- Your IP address
- Browser and device details
- Pages you viewed
- Items you added to cart or purchased
Facebook uses this information about your activity on websites with Facebook Pixels to determine what types of ads may be relevant to you. So if you search for vacuums on Google but also visit sites with Facebook Pixels that indicate you are interested in vacuums, Facebook can put two and two together and show you vacuum ads.
How Conversions API Works
The Conversions API works similarly to Facebook Pixels, allowing businesses to send events regarding your activity on their app or site to Facebook. The types of actions the Conversions API can track includes:
- Purchases
- Leads
- App installs
- Subscriptions
So for example, if you purchase a vacuum on a site using Conversions API, that purchase event gets sent to Facebook so they know you may be interested in vacuums. This allows them to target you with relevant ads.
Facebook’s Tracking Technologies
In addition to getting data from partners through methods like Facebook Pixels and Conversions API, Facebook also uses its own tracking technologies to gather information about you.
Facebook Cookies
Cookies are small data files stored on your device that allow websites to remember things like login details and site preferences. Facebook uses cookies both on their own site as well as on third-party websites that include Facebook features.
For example, many sites include Facebook login or share buttons. Facebook sets cookies when you visit sites with these features even if you don’t click on them. This allows them to gather information about pages you visit and use it for ad targeting.
Facebook SDK
Facebook also provides a Software Development Kit (SDK) that app developers can easily integrate to add Facebook features. The SDK allows Facebook to gather information about your use of apps that have integrated it.
Data collected can include app events like registration and purchase events. This gives Facebook information about your activity in apps linked to your Facebook account, allowing them to target ads.
Facebook’s Tracking Profile
Combining data from things like Facebook Pixels, Facebook Cookies, and the Facebook SDK allows Facebook to build an extensive profile about you and your interests.
This interest profile gets added to your Facebook ad preferences and is used to target you with relevant ads across Facebook’s networks which include Instagram and Messenger.
Partnerships with Data Brokers and Other Companies
Facebook also works with data brokers and other companies to get additional information about users that helps improve ad targeting.
Data Brokers
Data brokers aggregate data about consumers from a wide variety of sources including public records, loyalty programs, and purchase history data from retailers.
Facebook partners with data brokers like Acxiom, Experian, and Oracle Data Cloud to receive supplemental information about users. This extra data from sources outside of Facebook helps them categorize users and connect identities across sites.
Partnerships with Companies Like Google
Facebook also has partnerships with other tech giants like Google that allow them to share certain user data for ad targeting purposes. For example, back in 2018 Google allowed Facebook to pull DoubleClick ad data in order to measure online ad performance.
This enabled Facebook Pixel customers to see what ads users viewed on Google networks and then use that for Facebook ad targeting. However, Google announced they would be ending this data sharing partnership with Facebook moving forward due to privacy concerns.
Making Inferences Based on Your Activity
Even without directly accessing your data from sources like Google, Facebook is able to make educated guesses about your interests based on your behaviors across the web and on Facebook itself.
Lookalike Audiences
Facebook allows advertisers to target “lookalike” audiences. These are new groups of users who share similar qualities to an advertiser’s existing customers.
For example, if you purchase a lot of vacuums from a website that uses Facebook Pixels, you may get placed into a “vacuum purchaser” lookalike audience. Facebook uses its data about you to find other similar users even if they haven’t purchased on that site.
Interest-Based Targeting
Facebook can use its data about the pages you like, ads you click, events you attend and more to categorize you based on your apparent interests.
So if you seem interested in fitness based on the pages you engage with, Facebook may show you fitness ads even if you haven’t specifically searched for fitness content elsewhere online.
Legal Ways of Gathering User Data
While Facebook’s level of ad targeting might seem creepy, they use legal methods to collect user information under their data policy which users consent to. A few ways Facebook gathers data legally include:
- Requiring users to login and consent to data collection when using Facebook products
- Offering plugins and pixels that websites choose to implement voluntarily
- Paying for supplemental data about users from third-party partners
- Making logical inferences about what users may like based on their activities
So while the accuracy of Facebook’s ad targeting can seem uncanny, they gather data through legal means and partnerships.
Limiting Facebook’s Ad Targeting
If you are uncomfortable with how much of your data Facebook is collecting for ad purposes, there are some steps you can take to limit their tracking abilities:
- Adjust your ad preferences – Facebook allows you to view and remove interests used to target you ads in your Ad Preferences settings.
- Limit ad tracking – You can turn on ad tracking limitations which removes the ability for advertisers to target you based on most data sources.
- Use trackers blockers – Browser extensions like Privacy Badger can prevent sites from setting certain Facebook trackers like cookies.
- Delete Facebook – Completely removing your Facebook account eliminates their ability to build an advertising profile on you.
Conclusion
While it may seem concerning to have ads that follow you around the web, Facebook is generally relying on legal practices to target these ads by gathering both direct and inferred data about you. However, you do have options like ad preferences and tracker blockers if you want to limit Facebook’s knowledge of your activity across the internet.