ReferenceGoogle Ads disapproval
Dangerous or derogatory content
Google disapproves ads that incite hatred or discrimination, harass or bully someone, threaten or incite harm, or promote violence, self-harm or terrorist groups. Singling someone out for abuse and sharing personal details to enable harassment are covered too. Remove the targeted language, then save the ad for review, or remove the ad.
At a glance
- Where it shows
- The Status column on the Ads & assets page, as Disapproved under this policy.
- What stops
- The flagged ad or asset stops serving.
- How serious
- Warning first. Google says it issues a warning at least 7 days before any account suspension.
What it means
The policy covers content that incites hatred or discrimination, harasses or bullies people, threatens or incites harm, or exploits people. Google's examples are not exhaustive. Hate groups and their merchandise are named, as are advocating suicide, anorexia or self-harm, and promoting or celebrating terrorist acts.
For an ordinary business, the harassment rule is the one a comparison or complaint ad can reach. Google names singling someone out for abuse or harassment, so an ad that names a competitor or a local person in order to ridicule them is within its words.
What actually triggers it
A named person mocked in the ad
Singling someone out for abuse or harassment is named. An ad that names a competitor's owner, or another local person, and mocks them can fall under this rule.
Personal details used to pressure someone
Sharing personal information to enable fraud, identity theft, harmful contact or harassment is named. An ad or landing page that publishes someone's details in that way is covered.
A tragedy said not to have happened
Suggesting that a tragic event did not happen, or that victims or their families are actors or complicit in a cover-up, is named as harassment.
Threats and calls to harm
Threatening real-life harm or calling for attacks is named, as are advocating suicide, anorexia or self-harm, and promoting or celebrating terrorist acts, including recruitment.
Fix it in this order
- Open Ads & assets from the Campaigns menu, and list each ad or asset that shows this policy.
- Read the ad text, headlines, sitelinks and landing page for the named language, the named person or group, or the personal details.
- Hover over the ad or asset, select Edit, remove the targeted language or detail, and select Save.
- Remove the ad if the wording cannot be made compliant. The page says removal helps prevent future account suspension for repeated violations.
The edited ad is reviewed again, typically within 24 to 48 hours, and the result shows in the Status column.
When to appeal
Appeal when the ad does not target a group or a person, and say which words you believe were read wrongly. Google says to appeal from the account if you believe there was an error.
An appeal on an ad that still names and mocks a person is unlikely to change the result, because the page describes that as the rule itself. Remove the line instead.
Often confused with
Exploiting a disaster or conflict for business is under that policy. This one covers the same tragedies only when the content harasses, threatens or incites.