As the digital advertising industry faces increasing regulation with the implementation of 19 comprehensive state privacy laws and more on the horizon, the need for accountability and transparency has never been more critical. Recognizing this, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has introduced the IAB Diligence Platform, powered by SafeGuard Privacy. This innovative platform is designed to simplify and streamline compliance across the entire digital advertising ecosystem.
Meeting the Demands of a Regulated Industry
Digital advertising has officially become a regulated industry, with businesses now required to conduct due diligence on partners who handle personal information. The IAB Diligence Platform provides a practical and efficient solution for managing third-party privacy due diligence. The platform is available to a broad range of industry players, including brands, agencies, ad tech companies, publishers, and platforms.
“In today’s world, where privacy laws are constantly changing and compliance is becoming more and more complicated, the IAB Diligence Platform offers a much-needed, user-friendly solution,” said David Cohen, CEO of IAB. “We’re committed to giving the ecosystem the tools it needs to navigate these challenges confidently while maintaining strong data privacy standards. The most important takeaway is to get ahead of your responsibilities under the law, and be proactive, not reactive.”
Key Features of the IAB Diligence Platform
The IAB Diligence Platform is packed with features designed to ease the compliance burden for digital advertising businesses:
Advertising Industry-Specific Questions
The platform includes privacy-related questions developed by IAB that are specifically tailored to digital advertising data flows and business use cases. This ensures that businesses can conduct thorough third-party due diligence.
Efficiency and Scalability
Vendor compliance has traditionally been a manual, complex, and time-consuming process. With the IAB Diligence Platform, users can complete relevant questionnaires once and share them with current and prospective partners, significantly streamlining the diligence process and reducing repetitive tasks.
Comprehensive Compliance
The platform is regularly updated to address current state privacy laws, the Protecting Americans’ Data from Foreign Adversaries Act, and industry compliance initiatives like the Multi-State Privacy Agreement (MSPA). This ensures that businesses remain compliant with the latest regulations.
“State privacy laws now emphasize accountability, requiring businesses to ensure partners handle personal information lawfully, with mandatory audit provisions in contracts,” said Michael Hahn, EVP, General Counsel, IAB & IAB Tech Lab. “Additionally, regulations highlight the importance of due diligence in determining liability, making third-party risk management extremely important.”
Industry Collaboration and Support
The IAB Diligence Platform has been developed in close collaboration with industry leaders, including Adform, Hershey, and Raptive, who have been vocal supporters during its development process. Their involvement highlights the platform’s potential to set new benchmarks for data privacy and compliance in digital advertising.
John Piccone, Regional President, Americas, Adform, emphasized the platform’s impact: “New vendor due diligence requirements are especially challenging for digital advertising companies that work with thousands of partners. This platform helps streamline our diligence processes by using standardized questions and automated compliance updates, ensuring our partners comply with the latest privacy laws.”
Vinny Rinaldi, Head of Media, U.S. CMG & Salty, Hershey, added, “The IAB Diligence Platform helps us manage privacy regulations and ensure our advertising partners meet high data protection standards. We’re eager to use this platform to enhance our compliance efforts and uphold our commitment to consumer privacy.”
Paul Bannister, Chief Strategy Officer, Raptive, also shared his thoughts: “By centralizing compliance across multiple partners, the IAB Diligence Platform enables media companies like Raptive to assure our customers that their data is handled responsibly and in a manner that meets all requirements under the law. Additionally, the platform’s ability to update compliance as laws change keeps us proactive, not reactive.”
The Future of Compliance in Digital Advertising
The development of the IAB Diligence Platform began at IAB’s Annual Leadership Meeting (ALM) in January 2024, where industry privacy lawyers and law firms collaborated within the Privacy Implementation and Accountability Task Force (PIAT) to create the right business and privacy questions for each digital advertising use case and vendor type.
As the digital advertising industry continues to evolve, the IAB Diligence Platform stands out as a critical tool for businesses looking to navigate the complex landscape of privacy regulations with confidence and efficiency.
For more information on how the IAB Diligence Platform can help streamline your compliance efforts, visit https://safeguardprivacy.com/iab-diligence-platform/.