The marketing and advertising industry continues to evolve at a rapid pace, with the global digital advertising market projected to reach $667 billion by 2024. As companies increasingly integrate social media and streaming platforms into their marketing strategies, it becomes critical to examine how such interactions may be impacting your privacy.¹ A detailed report reveals that there were 5.17 billion social media users around the world by July 2024, accounting for 63.7% of the global population.² With the majority of the world’s population interacting with social media daily, these platforms have become not only social tools but also powerful economic drivers.

The question, however, is: at what cost to personal privacy?

Findings from the FTC Report

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently released a comprehensive report examining how social media and video streaming services (SMVSSs) collect, use, and store vast amounts of user data, often in ways that go far beyond what users expect.³ Here are some of the report’s most crucial takeaways:

• Vast Data Collection: SMVSSs collect a wide range of data, including personal, demographic, and behavioral information. These platforms track online activities both on and off their platforms, amassing a rich pool of data about users, which is often more detailed than consumers realize.
• Data Use for Ad Targeting: One of the primary ways companies leverage user data is for ad targeting. The FTC’s report highlights how companies refine their advertising strategies by using demographic information such as age, gender, socio-economic status, and even familial relationships. This allows for highly specific ad placements, ensuring companies reach particular consumer segments.
• Secondary Purpose of Data: Beyond targeting ads, companies also use consumer data for various other purposes. Whether it’s for content personalization, to increase user engagement, or for internal analysis, data collected from users is central to how these platforms operate. This “secondary purpose” use of data raises questions about whether consumers fully understand how their information is being repurposed for business strategies beyond advertising.
• Lookalike Modeling: A growing concern is the use of “lookalike modeling,” where companies create profiles of potential customers who resemble existing ones. This can involve sensitive data like race, ethnicity, or gender, raising ethical concerns about the potential for unintentional discrimination. The FTC is scrutinizing this practice, particularly when protected characteristics are involved.
• Programmatic Marketing: Real-time bidding and programmatic marketing play an enormous role in digital advertising. In these automated systems, advertisers bid for ad space based on real-time data about users’ behavior and preferences. The FTC report found that the top five platforms involved in programmatic marketing generated massive revenue, but this also raises concerns about data privacy and security, especially given the sheer volume of user data processed in real time.
• Treating Teens as Adults: Companies often treat teens as if they were traditional adult users. The report emphasizes that children do not become fully formed adults the moment they turn thirteen, and the harms COPPA aims to prevent can affect teenagers as much as—or even more than—they affect younger children. Research indicates that teens’ digital lives may result in safety, mental health, and privacy harms. This is especially notable given that young people, including teens, are reporting higher prevalence of mental health conditions than adults.

Transparency and Data Subject Rights

The FTC report also addresses the lack of transparency many companies exhibit regarding their data collection practices. Users are often unaware of the full extent of the data being collected, particularly regarding activities that occur outside the primary platform. This opaque approach leaves users vulnerable, especially when companies retain this data for longer than necessary or use it for undisclosed purposes.

Moreover, while companies offer mechanisms for users to access or delete their data, these processes are often cumbersome and not well-publicized. This makes it difficult for users to exercise their data rights, despite existing legal frameworks that protect consumer privacy.

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Children and Teens’ Data Privacy Concerns

The FTC report has highlighted alarming practices concerning the handling of data from children and teens by many companies. Despite the stipulations of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which requires companies to obtain parental consent before collecting personal information from children under 13, the FTC has found numerous instances where companies fail to comply. These companies have been found using children’s data for internal operations or monetizing it without proper disclosure, raising serious privacy concerns.

Additionally, the FTC observed that most companies are not members of self-regulatory organizations focused on children’s privacy. Among the few that are members, their efforts are primarily aimed at preventing child sexual abuse or exploitation, rather than enhancing overall privacy protections for children.

Ignoring Child Users

A common assertion among many platforms is that their services are not directed at children, and they do not permit child accounts, effectively suggesting there are no child users. This claim is contradicted by widespread evidence indicating that children indeed use these services, revealing a glaring oversight in company policies that neglects a vulnerable user base.

Inconsistent Parental Access

The report also underscores the limited rights granted to parents or legal guardians over the data of teen users. Some companies do permit parents to review or access personal information collected from users under 18, but this often involves a complicated process of verifying both the parent’s and the teen’s identities. More concerning is the rarity with which companies allow parents to request the deletion of a teen’s personal information, with most companies either denying these requests outright or requiring them to be made through the teen’s account, thereby significantly restricting parental control.

Engagement Strategies

Furthermore, many companies deploy sophisticated engagement strategies that increase screen time among younger audiences. By utilizing machine learning and AI, these platforms tailor content in ways that specifically target and keep children and teens engaged. This practice not only raises ethical questions about the manipulation of young users but also concerns about the potential overexposure to tailored advertising and content.

Programmatic Advertising and Data Privacy

The rise of programmatic advertising—particularly real-time bidding (RTB)—has transformed the digital marketing landscape. This method allows companies to bid on ad placements in real time, using detailed user data to target ads with extreme precision. While this has led to increased ad revenues, the FTC report warns of significant privacy risks, especially as sensitive data is processed across various platforms at high speed.

The FTC is advocating for stricter data protection measures to mitigate the risk of data breaches or misuse in this increasingly automated and data-driven industry.

Protecting Your Privacy: User Rights and Company Responsibilities

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In light of these findings, the FTC report emphasizes the need for stronger regulations and greater corporate transparency to protect user privacy. To safeguard your personal data, consider taking the following actions:

1. Regularly Update Privacy Settings: Review and adjust privacy settings on social media and streaming platforms to control what data is shared and with whom.
2. Use Privacy-Focused Tools: Consider using tools such as ad blockers, VPNs, and privacy browsers to limit the amount of data tracking across platforms.
3. Limit App Permissions: Regularly review and manage the permissions you’ve granted to apps, and revoke access to sensitive data whenever possible.

The FTC also urges companies to take greater responsibility for their data practices. Platforms should implement mechanisms that make it easy for users to inquire about, access, and request the deletion of their data. Furthermore, businesses must ensure they are transparent about their data handling practices, only retaining personal data for as long as necessary, and in ways that align with user expectations and regulatory standards.

Ensuring Privacy in a Digital World

As the digital advertising industry continues to grow, the need for robust privacy protections becomes more pressing. With social media now used by a majority of the global population, these platforms are at the forefront of consumer interaction—and thus, potential privacy risks. The FTC’s report calls for enhanced consumer education and stronger regulatory oversight to ensure that these platforms operate transparently and ethically when it comes to user data.

For a deeper look at the FTC’s findings and recommendations, the full report can be accessed here.⁴

In this ever-evolving landscape of digital marketing, vigilance from both consumers and regulatory bodies is essential. While the innovations driven by the advertising industry offer valuable ways for businesses to connect with their audiences, it’s critical that these innovations don’t come at the expense of user privacy. By staying informed and exercising control over personal data, users can take steps to protect themselves in this data-driven world.

1. DataReportal, Social Media Users, DataReportal (July 2024), https://datareportal.com/social-media-users. ↩︎
2. Id. ↩︎
3. FTC Staff Report Finds Large Social Media and Video Streaming Companies Have Engaged in Vast Surveillance,Federal Trade Commission (Sept. 12, 2024), https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2024/09/ftc-staff-report-finds-large-social-media-video-streaming-companies-have-engaged-vast-surveillance. ↩︎
4. A Look Behind the Screens: Examining the Data Practices of Social Media and Video Streaming Services, Federal Trade Commission (Sept. 11, 2024), https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/Social-Media-6b-Report-9-11-2024.pdf. ↩︎