MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — Google announced Thursday that it will make changes to its advertising policies to prevent “unlawful discrimination” around housing, employment and credit according to a release by the company.
The company said it will prohibit ads for those three categories from being targeted based on users’ gender, age, parental status, marital status or ZIP code.
Google will also provide housing advertisers with additional information about fair housing to help ensure they are acting in ways that support access to housing opportunities, according to the release.
The announcement came more than a year after Facebook was charged with violating the Fair Housing Act.
Facebook said, at the time, it was surprised by the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s decision—saying it was working with the department to address concerns and had taken significant steps to prevent advertising discrimination.
Google said the policy update will be rolled out to advertisers across the United States and Canada in the coming months.
The company said it has worked closely with HUD on the ad policy changes and would continue to do so.
Rishi Iyengar and CNN Newsource contributed to this article.
