TikTok tests new ad tools for enhanced data protection

TikTok’s new offering PrivacyGo, will enable advertisers to match their CRM info with the audience’s insights, in a way that their privacy is protected. 

Collaborating parties will share data into a protected space. This ensures ad targeting without granting either party access to the other’s data, enabling precise audience targeting while adhering to regulations.

According to Business Insider’s report, TikTok is currently testing PrivacyGo, with the intention to make it available widely down the road. 

TikTok has shared that their process relies on multi-party computation (MPC) and differential privacy to maintain separate data sets, ensuring no access by related parties. They draw confidence from the fact that the U.S. Government uses a similar approach to analyze census data, hoping this will assure everyone of its safety and adherence to standards.

TikTok’s data usage practices are likely to undergo heightened examination compared to other apps.

The company, which is owned by a Chinese entity, is currently being investigated by CFIUS regarding its possible connections to the Chinese Government. There are concerns about the potential risk of US user data being directly accessible to Chinese spy agencies due to app usage. This investigation may lead to a complete ban of TikTok in the United States, while other regions also express worries about the app’s data collection methods and how TikTok information might be utilized in such circumstances.

This update holds significant importance for TikTok as it allows the platform to leverage valuable user insights for enhancing ad targeting while staying compliant with changing data protection regulations.

If successful, this update has the potential to assist numerous brands in optimizing their ad campaigns, offering enhanced ad targeting choices to connect with their most engaged audiences within the app.

This process will face extensive examination, and TikTok may need to offer detailed explanations to reassure advertising partners. However, it has the potential to significantly enhance ad targeting capabilities.

Concerns about the company’s possible connections to the Chinese Government aren’t new. A poll done two years ago showed almost half of Americans worry TikTok would share their data with the Chinese government. Just last year, there was another report, denied by TikTok, about the app being used to track US citizens. 

Additionally, TikTok is banned from government-issued devices in multiple different places including U.S. House of Representatives, two states in the US: New Jersey and Ohio, Canada, and the UK.