How to Stop Brands from Using You in their Facebook Ads

If you have checked your Facebook account in recent days, it is very likely that you have seen sponsored stories in your newsfeed that read something like  “<Friend’s Name> likes <Brand’s Name>.” These are basically social ads where the  advertiser is targeting friends of connections to promote their Facebook Page.

For instance, if James likes Samsung, the Korean company can create Facebook ads that target James’ friends and the ads will read like “James Likes Samsung.”

When your name appears in these social Facebook ads, it may give an impression that you have endorsed a particular brand. And this isn’t just limited to Facebook Pages as brands may use your likes to promote mobile  apps as well as events that you have RSVP’d on Facebook.

HOW TO OPT-OUT OF SPONSORED STORIES

Facebook, unfortunately, doesn’t offer you can an option to opt-out of these social ads so if you like a brand of Facebook, your profile is very likely to show up in sponsored stories appearing on your friends’ newsfeeds.

There is however a workaround – set the privacy of your Facebook Likes as private and thus brands won’t be able to use your likes for ads.

To do so, go to your About page on Facebook and scroll down to the Likes section. Click the Edit button (the one with the Pen icon) and then choose Edit Privacy. Set the privacy of “Other” and “Interests” to “Only Me” and brands won’t be able to use your profile in their sponsored stories.