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The rapid speed and convenience of mobile data have seen more and more people use smart devices to surf the Internet. This convenience, however, appears to have compromised their privacy as users often find that when they open their phone after a chat, they will come across product ads of things they just mentioned. They believe their device's microphone is spying on their conversations, picking up on keywords for the purpose of targeted ad push.
This train of thought has good ground, because advertisers these days carefully place ads in locations where they appeal the most. Inevitably, to deliver effective ads, apps need to collect as much user data as possible for reference. Although these apps request users' consent before letting users enjoy the app, on one hand, many users are worried about how their private data is managed and do not want to spend time reading lengthy personal data collection agreements. On the other hand, there is no global and unified advertising industry standards and legal framework, especially in terms of advertising service transparency and obtaining user consent. As a result, the process of collecting user data between advertisers, apps, and third-party data platforms is not particularly transparent.
So how can we handle that? IAB Europe and IAB Technology Laboratory (Tech Lab) released the Transparency and Consent Framework (TCF), and the IAB Tech Lab stewards technical specifications for TCF. TCF v2.0 now has been released, which requires the app to notify users of what data is being collected and how advertisers cooperating with the app intend to use such data. Users reserve the right to grant or refuse consent and exercise their "right to object" to the collection of their personal data. Users are better positioned to determine when and how vendors can use data processing functions such as precise geographical locations, so that users can better understand how their personal data is collected and used, ultimately protecting users' data rights and standardizing personal data collection across apps.
Put simply, TCF v2.0 simplifies the programmatic advertising process for advertisers, apps, and third-party data platforms, so that once data usage permissions are standardized, users can better understand who has access to their personal data and how it is being used.
To protect user privacy, build an open and compliant advertising ecosystem, and consolidate the compliance of advertising services, HUAWEI Ads joined the global vendor list (GVL) of TCF v2.0 on September 18, 2020, and our vendor ID is 856.
HUAWEI Ads does not require partners to integrate TCF v2.0. This section describes how HUAWEI Ads interacts with apps that have integrated or will integrate TCF v2.0 only.
Apps that do not support TCF v2.0 can send user consent information to HUAWEI Ads through the Consent SDK. Please refer to this link for more details. If you are going to integrate TCF v2.0, please read the information below about how HUAWEI Ads processes data contained in ad requests based on the Transparency and Consent (TC) string of TCF v2.0. Before using HUAWEI Ads with TCF v2.0, your app needs to register as a Consent Management Platform (CMP) of TCF v2.0 or use a registered TCF v2.0 CMP. SSPs, DSPs, and third-party tracking platforms that interact with HUAWEI Ads through TCF v2.0 must apply to be a vendor on the GVL.
Purposes
To ensure that your app can smoothly use HUAWEI Ads within TCF v2.0, please refer to the following table for the purposes and legal bases declared by HUAWEI Ads when being registered as a vendor of TCF v2.0.
The phrase "use HUAWEI Ads within TCF v2.0" mentioned earlier includes but is not limited to:
Bidding on bid requests received by HUAWEI Ads
Sending bid requests to DSPs through HUAWEI Ads
Using third-party tracking platforms to track and analyze the ad performance
For details, check the different policies of HUAWEI Ads in the following table.
| Purpose | Purpose/Function | Legal Basis |
| 1 | Store and/or access information on a device. | User consent |
| 2 | Select basic ads. | User consent/Legitimate interest |
| 3 | Create a personalized ad profile. | User consent |
| 4 | Deliver personalized ads. | User consent |
| 7 | Measure ad performance. | User consent/Legitimate interest |
| 9 | Apply market research to generate audience insights. | User consent/Legitimate interest |
| 10 | Develop and improve products. | User consent/Legitimate interest |
| Special purpose 1 | Ensure security, prevent frauds, and debug. | Legitimate interest |
| Special purpose 2 | Technically deliver ads or content. | Legitimate interest |
Usage of the TC String
A TC string contains user consent information on a purpose or feature, and its format is defined by IAB Europe. HUAWEI Ads processes data according to the consent information contained in the TC string by following the IAB Europe Transparency & Consent Framework Policies.
- If you are a publisher and your app supports TCF v2.0, you can use setConsent(String consent) in the HUAWEI Ads SDK to pass a TC string to HUAWEI Ads. For details, please refer to setConsent(String consent).
The sample code is as follows:
// Set the user consent string that complies with TCF v2.0.
RequestOptions requestOptions = HwAds.getRequestOptions();
requestOptions.toBuilder().setConsent("tcfString").build();
If you are an SSP or Ad Exchange (ADX) provider and your platform supports TCF v2.0, you can add a TC string to an ad or bidding request and send it to HUAWEI Ads. HUAWEI Ads will then process users' personal data based on the consent information contained in the received TC string. For details about the API, please contact the HUAWEI Ads support team.
If you are a DSP provider and your platform supports TCF v2.0, HUAWEI Ads, functioning as an ADX, determines whether to send users' personal data in bidding requests to you according to the consent information contained in the TC string. Only when users' consent is obtained can HUAWEI Ads share their personal data with you. For details about the API, please contact the HUAWEI Ads support team.
For other precautions, see the guide on integration with IAB TCF v2.0.