FTC Complaint on AdWords Ban – Yes, I’m still banned
Google’s final response to the San Jose BBB case was this:
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, and we are unable to provide any additional information. Google reserves the right to disable any ads when deemed necessary per the AdWords Terms and Conditions: https://adwords.google.com/select/tsandcsfinder. Again, we apologize for any frustration. Your AdWords account will remain suspended unless you have the ability to edit the content of the sites for which you were previously advertising.
The whole thing is pretty insulting.
Over the past few days there were some really great comments on the original post – with some really good ideas.
Since the BBB channel got nowhere, I decided to file a complaint with the FTC – Federal Trade Commission. The FTC doesn’t attempt to resolve individual complaints – at the same time the FTC can do a lot to solve everyone’s complaints about something like AdWords and their practices – especially as Google gets as big as it is now. The only way for that to happen, though, would be for them to get a bunch of complaints, not just two. I’ll put in my grain of sand and wait for the avalanche. Maybe the FTC will get a hundred complaints over three years and act like they got them all last Tuesday – playing the same time-distortion games Google plays with everyone else.
In case you’re interested, and it helps you file your complaint, here is the full text of the complaint I filed.
Google AdWords service is using misleading and deceptive language, policies and practices with regards to suspending accounts. Furthermore they offer as a way of resolving AdWords service problems a course of action that is either impossible (modify sites you dont own) or would involve committing a crime. They offer no real recourse. They bar you from their advertising program as an individual, for life, and mark accounts that may be associated to your person. This does make me a less valuable professional in real life. If this was the corner coffee shop, that would not be a problem. The problem arises when Google uses these policies that provide no realistic recourse, and at the same time controls the great majority of search traffic worldwide.
I filed a case with Google’s local BBB (the San Jose BBB, case #<withheld>) and received Google’s final reply of “Your AdWords account will remain suspended unless you have the ability to edit the content of the sites for which you were previously advertising.” These sites they are referring to are sites I dont own and Im not trying to advertise at all – It has been over two years since I advertised those sites. Google is knowingly acting in a devilishly deceptive manner, while ruining my good name and barring me from their system with no recourse.
Google AdWords is taking permanent and continued action starting June 2011, based on events that took place at least a year ago, which merited a warning in 2010. Google unilaterally escalated the perceived severity of past actions and provides as a possible way of resolution an avenue which Google fully understand is impossible to execute. While Google’s explanations seem rational (‘fix the website’), and it may fully fit within the processes Google has defined, that doesn’t take away nor satisfactorily explain nor resolve the material facts that Google has permanently suspended me personally based solely on activity that took place a year ago, which they reviewed in due time a year ago, and provide no viable course of action to resolve the dispute amicably. “Fixing” a website I don’t own is not a viable course of action and Google insists that is their only acceptable means of resolution, and puts the onus on me. Google is knowingly asking to perform an impossible task, so Google can bar me from their system with the deceptive claim that I am unwilling to fulfill their requirements for compliance.
Google continually cites they “Reserve the right to disable any ads…” That is not an issue here. The issue is that they are barring me for life with no recourse; that is not the same as reserving the right to disable non-compliant ads.
Please give me a call if you have further questions.
To file a complaint with the FTC, just go here and click the big “FTC Complaint Assistant” graphic.
You’ll need a bit of Google’s business details, which they kindly provided via the BBB, and are these:
Google, Inc.
1600 Amphitheatre Pkwy
Mountain View, CA 94043-1351
Phone: (650) 330-0100
Have fun!
6/22/11 update: Don’t forget to also file your complaint with your state’s Attorney General. You can find your states attorney general webpage (and their online complaint form) right here in the National Association of Attorneys General directory or just Slash it with blekko.
Gyuri, 
NegBox, 
Luke 12:47 am on June 22, 2011 Permalink |
I just found your post while searching online. The same thing happened to me, but the ads they banned me for were 7 years old.
I wrote up the whole ordeal here: http://www.everstatus.com/03/29/google-bans-11-year-old-adwords-account-over-deleted-ads/
I would suggest possibly filing a complaint with your state Attorney General. They have been instrumental in banding together to lobby the FTC to take action.
Google has an amazing amount of hubris at the moment and it will probably take regulatory action to bring any sort of change.
NegBox 6:11 pm on June 22, 2011 Permalink |
@Luke, great post on your blog – Thank you. I’ve just finished filing a complaint with my state’s Attorney General. I think I have a contact into his office too – Yummy! I knew I was forgetting something.
Google is controlling a monopolistic-level share of something extremely valuable to citizens: The index to the internet. You either self-regulate and keep complaints low, or get doggy-banged by the government. It isn’t rocket science, the same deal has played out dozens of times before, yet it seems it takes more than a thousand PhDs to figure out.
Bil Smith 8:21 pm on June 22, 2011 Permalink |
I’ve lost a handful of Adwords accounts over the years but it never really bothered me to be honest, but what they’re doing now is ridiculous. I lost accounts because I was doing things I shouldn’t have been doing – knowingly, no less – not because of something that I promoted half a decade ago that changed without any input from me. Google is the 600 pound gorilla in the room and they’ve relied on that to pull this kind of crap. Hopefully if enough people complain to the right people, something will finally be done.
NegBox 8:47 pm on June 22, 2011 Permalink |
Bil, that’s exactly the issue. You get banned for being sly… Fine. Move on or try again. You can’t complain. You get banned for nothing, and suddenly you’re on a crusade to avenge the wrong, embodied in the monstrous Googlezilla. Human nature at its best. What makes it most fun to watch is Google’s uncompromising out-of-this-planet idea of customer service and public opinion, which goes along the lines of “What customers?” – Behaving as if the world were static and timeless, or that an impenetrable shell can be created is, in one word: Solipsistic.
Matt 12:59 pm on August 11, 2011 Permalink |
any update on this post? curious if the gov-types made any mention of receiving your info.
NegBox 11:06 pm on August 11, 2011 Permalink |
@matt, they did – I got two letters from my state’s Attorney General. I really don’t expect much. If anything the whole experience is quite liberating. Now instead of trying my best to be a good AdWords advertiser, I try my best to be the sneakiest AdWords outlaw as possible – Way less stressful.
Hay 3:30 pm on October 24, 2011 Permalink |
I too just found out that I am permanently suspended from my adwords account because of two failed campaigns I ran for about a month two years ago. I simply took two campaigns from an affiliate network that I am part of and tried some adwords ads. Guess who lost money? So, I stopped the campaigns and never gave it any more thought. Lo and behold, a few weeks ago i visited my adwords account and found myself PERMANENTLY SUSPENDED!! I emailed the great Internet god and found that I may as well talk to a brick. Certainly I could easily find more common sense talking to a brick. Couldn’t reason at all with them.
Google insisted that the only way to be re-established was to make changes to the websites (which I NEVER DID OWN, NOR DID I EVER HAVE ACCESS TO THEM). Google is completely, totally, unreasonable and uncaring. They own the internet and set all the rules to suit their own profitability.
Have you ever noticed that google’s attitude toward anyone trying to make money on the Internet is like you are pond scum (while they scoop in billions after obscene billions). Interesting, eh?
Google is an INTERNET BULLY of the highest magnitude and the sooner someone legislates them the better. How can the governments of the world stand by and let this monster become even more monstrous?
NegBox 3:00 pm on October 27, 2011 Permalink |
Hey Hay – A giant chunk of the responsibility for the way Google is today falls on us. And by ‘us’ I mean people directly related to technology – I can’t take all the credit, otherwise I’d say “me”.
We used Google instead of Altavista, Dogpile, or Yahoo – MSN was out of the question since they were the Evil Galactic Empire ruled by Darth Gates. We switched everyone’s default engine from Yahoo to Google. We told everyone about Google. We made Google grow into what it is today. Why? First, they gave us the same shitty results as everyone else, except they had a very clean homepage – while everyone else had shit out the wazoo on their search page – Who wants to load a 1 Megabyte page on a 56K modem? Let alone set it as a default page…. Then Google started giving really good results – Took them YEARS to put out more relevant results than the other engines – Nobody gives a shit about the quality o the results if it takes forever to get them, though – so we all used Google then for its speed and un-cluttered-ness and gave them the chance to get better. Then they added ads to their listings and over time literally fucked us all in the ass and will continue to do so for quite some time… So better go get some K-Y.
Gyuri 8:36 am on December 12, 2011 Permalink |
Hey,
How is your case coming with the FTC? Would love to have some updates.
Gyuri 7:43 am on December 13, 2011 Permalink |
Just raised my FTC complaint. I focused on the fact that Google Adwords is a monopoly for online advertisement, and them banning you for life seriously impairs your prospects to enter the online market which is a necessity for survival.
If there would be 4-5 players with 20% market share their ban would not matter, but this way it does. For an FTC complaint you need to focus on monopolistic nature of Google, and why they should not be allowed to ban an advertiser for life.
NegBox 10:41 pm on December 20, 2011 Permalink |
Really “my case” is lob the grenade and run. Not gonna chase the FTC. Now does anyone really believe that because Google doesn’t want me to use their systems, I won’t if I need to? If I had a choice, then I would respect that – When I don’t have a choice, well then I just don’t have a choice.
Gyuri 11:43 am on December 16, 2011 Permalink |
One more thing I wanted to mention that the Adwords team could simply block questionable URLs in campaigns instead of banning people. This treatment is totally rude. In the US Justice system not even murderers get a permanent ban for life.
Gyuri 7:34 am on December 25, 2011 Permalink |
One more addition: If you are living in the EU the new data protection scheme will allow individuals the “right to be forgotten” , meaning someone can request the deletion of all personal data, such as IP email etc. This way they wont be able to ban you for life. Screw you Google, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/internet/8388033/Online-right-to-be-forgotten-confirmed-by-EU.html.
I will be one of hte first person to request this for my Adwords account.