We are pausing the changes described in this article until further notice.

To personalise the ads you see on TikTok, we use personal data which is collected in two ways:

If you are 18 or over and in the EEA, the UK, or Switzerland, TikTok is making a legal change to how it will use your on-TikTok activity to personalise your ads.

Under applicable data protection law, companies like TikTok must have a legal basis for processing your information. Historically, TikTok asked you for your "consent" to use your on-TikTok activity and off-TikTok activity to serve you personalised ads. From 13 July 2022 TikTok will rely on its "legitimate interests" as its legal basis to use on-TikTok activity to personalise the ads of users who are 18 or over.

How does this affect my previous choices?

Where you did not previously consent to personalised ads:

• You will receive personalised ads based on your on-TikTok activity collected on or after 13 July 2022.

• Your on-TikTok activity collected prior to 13 July 2022 will not be used to personalise your ads.

• You will continue not to receive ads based on your off-TikTok activity.

Where you did previously consent to personalised ads:

• You will receive personalised ads based on your on-TikTok activity collected on or after 13 July 2022.

• Initially, and for a limited period of time, these will also be based on your on-TikTok activity collected before 13 July 2022. During this period you’ll be able to withdraw your consent to the use of this data at any time via a control in your in-app "Ads personalization" settings called "Use of past on-TikTok activity to personalise ads". By withdrawing your consent, TikTok will stop using your on-TikTok activity collected before 13 July 2022 to personalise your ads.

• However, please note that withdrawing your consent will not affect the use of on-TikTok activity collected on or after 13 July 2022 as from that date, TikTok will be using its "legitimate interest" to process that information.

• You will continue to receive ads based on your off-TikTok activity. You can revoke your consent for ads based on your off-TikTok activity at any time in your privacy settings.

What if I am under 18?

• This change does not affect you.

• You will continue to be able to give or withdraw your consent to the use of your on-TikTok activity and off-TikTok activity to personalise your ads.

What happens when I turn 18?

Non-consented users who turn 18

If you are under 18 years old and have not consented to receive personalised ads:

• TikTok will display a notice to you the first time you open TikTok after you turn 18.

• 30 days after receipt of this notice, TikTok will start using your on-TikTok activity to personalise your ads.

• Your on-TikTok activity collected before you turned 18 won’t be used to personalise your ads.

• You will continue not to receive ads based on your off-TikTok activity.

Consented users who turn 18

If you are under 18 and have consented to receive personalised ads:

• You'll continue to receive personalised ads, but these will only be based on your on-TikTok activity collected after you turn 18.

• Your on-TikTok activity collected before you turned 18 will no longer be used to personalise your ads.

• You'll also continue to receive personalised ads based on your off-TikTok activity. You can withdraw your consent to ads based on your off-TikTok activity at any time.

How can I get more information?

If you have any questions about the above changes, you can contact us through our Privacy Webform. To find out how you can exercise your data subject rights, like your right to object to "legitimate interest" based processing, please see here. For more information on TikTok’s use of your data, please see our Privacy Policy.

You can find more information about why we show ads, how we use data to select ads and what controls our community has over the ads they see here.