Google Ads reporting glitch exposes competitor data

Google Ads has encountered a major reporting glitch that resulted in the exposure of sensitive competitor information and rendered several key reporting tools and product management features inaccessible. This outage impacts advertisers' ability to manage their campaigns and access critical performance data, raising serious privacy concerns.

Affected Tools and Features

• Unavailable Tools: Report Editor, Dashboards, and Saved Reports in the Google Ads web interface.
• Impacted Features: Products, Product Groups, and Listing Groups pages across the web interface, API, and Google Ads Editor.

The glitch led to the exposure of unrelated item IDs, product titles, and Merchant Center information, making it possible for advertisers to identify direct competitors by searching the exposed product titles. This issue was first reported by the UK advertising agency, Bidnamic, on LinkedIn, highlighting that between July 30-31, 2024, advertisers were able to see sensitive information from competitors' accounts. Although the data leakage does not include sensitive personal information, it could reveal valuable insights about competitors' products and advertising strategies.

Google Ads Liaison Ginny Marvin acknowledged the issue on Twitter and stated that the team is "actively looking into" it, promising updates as more information becomes available.

The causes of the breach and downtime are not disclosed by Google. No details are available about the number of affected individuals.

Three Google shopping ads experts suggest that the glitch stems from a problem with the MCC feature. There is speculation that the glitch is related to a major rollout of a new GMC account system, which began in August 2024. Despite this, Google has provided limited information about the glitch, causing frustration among affected users.

Some agencies have begun encrypting sensitive information within client accounts to prevent future breaches.

As of August 1, 2024, Report Editor, Dashboards, and Saved Reports in the web interface are back online. However, Products, Product Groups, and Listing Groups pages remain down across the web interface, API, and Google Ads Editor.

Timeline of Events

• Initial Glitch: Started on July 30, 16:54:38 PST, causing a small fraction of advertisers to serve ads for products from other Google Merchant Center accounts.
• Resolution: The serving issue was resolved on July 31, 11:27:35 PST.
• Temporary Pause: Access to certain reports was paused on August 1 to restore reporting accuracy for the impacted period.
• Ongoing Efforts: Google is working urgently to bring all reports back online and will provide updates as more information becomes available.

Advertisers should exercise caution when accessing their Google Ads accounts and avoid acting on any data until Google confirms the issue is fully resolved.