Google's Ads Transparency Center Helps You Keep Track of Advertisements

Google has rolled out a new initiative that allows consumers to learn more about the ads they see as they cruise the web. 

The appropriately-named Ads Transparency Center is a searchable database of all ads verified by Google. It provides all kinds of helpful information to help people make informed purchase decisions, such as other ads the company has run, the format of the ad, the start date of an ad, and more. 

The information is so robust Google says the new hub allows you to learn a whole lot about the advertiser without visiting their website and, most importantly, without purchasing their product. In theory, this should increase consumer confidence when shopping via directed advertisements. 

Google has also made it easy to visit this magical Ads Transparency Center. You can visit the hub directly via Google or encounter a more personalized version when seeing an advertisement. In these cases, just click on the three-dot menu next to the ad to reveal whether or not the business is verified. 

You can also like an ad, so Google will recommend similar products to you in the future. Additionally, the service lets you block ads and report ads for inappropriate or misleading content. These features are available for traditional banner ads, sidebar ads, and even video YouTube ads.

The Google Ads Transparency Center begins rolling out today worldwide, but it will take a few weeks to reach every user.