Controlling gambling related content you see on Facebook

See how you can control the gambling related content you see on Facebook by controlling the ads you see.

Published: 28 September 2020

Last updated: 21 May 2021

This version was printed or saved on: 30 April 2024

Online version: https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/public-and-players/guide/controlling-gambling-related-content-you-see-on-facebook

Overview: The ads you click, the Pages and posts you like, the websites you visit and the apps you use all influence the ads you see on Facebook. For example, if you like Pages related to gambling, you may see more ads about gambling.

Tools you can use

Facebook provides you with a number of tools to control the ads you see in your Newsfeed. By following our tips in this guide, you can control your Facebook experience by choosing what gambling related content you can and can’t see.

How to control the ads you see

Be conscious of the content you engage with on Facebook. For example, if you’d like to see fewer ads related to gambling, unfollow gambling related Pages.

Hide ads by opening the menu in the upper right-hand corner of an ad and select Hide ad. This won’t change how many ads you see, but it will make the ones you see more relevant.
From the same menu you can select ‘Why am I seeing this ad?’ to hide all ads from that advertiser.
Finally, the Ad Preferences tool gives you further control over what influences the ads you see.

Updating your ad preferences using the Ad Preferences tool

How to update your ad preferences

Click the down-pointing triangle icon in the top right of Facebook.
Select Settings & Privacy > Settings.
Click Ads in the left sidebar.
On this “Your Ad Preferences” page, you can update your interests, choose what Facebook information is used to show you ads, and adjust your general ad settings.

There are several different sections in Ad Preferences which you can explore.

In the Advertisers section you can:

Review advertisers you’ve recently seen ads from and advertisers whose ads you’ve clicked.
Hide ads from these advertisers.

In the Data section you can:

Manage how third-party data is used to show you ads on Facebook, and how data from Facebook is used to show you ads off Facebook.

In the Categories used to reach you sub-section you can:

Manage whether you can be targeted based on certain attributes listed in your profile i.e. relationship status, employer, job title or education.

In the Interest Categories sub-section you can:

View and remove interests that influence the ads you see. Note that advertisers may show similar ads to multiple or broad audiences. So, if you remove football as an interest but keep rugby, for example, you may still see ads from a business broadly targeting those interested in sport.

In the Other Categories sub-section you can:

Remove yourself from other categories that advertisers can use to reach you.

Facebook wants the ads you see to be as interesting and useful to you as possible. Keep in mind that Facebook doesn’t share information that personally identifies you or can be used to contact you (name, email address etc.) unless you give them permission.

To learn more about the information Facebook receives and how it is used, read the Data Policy (opens in a new tab) and Cookies Policy (opens in a new tab).