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Instagram’s ad settings can help you adjust some advertising choices, but they are not a universal switch that stops Meta from using data. Start with Ads Preferences, review activity shared by other apps and websites, and use the controls on individual ads. If your concern is AI training rather than ad personalization, treat that as a separate privacy issue: the relevant objection process depends on your location and its current availability.
First, separate AI-powered ads from AI training
“Using my data for AI” can mean two different things. Meta’s October 1, 2025 announcement addressed using interactions with its generative AI features as a signal for personalized content and ad recommendations. Meta said this was to begin on December 16, 2025, in most regions. That is an announced effective date; the announcement does not establish what settings are available for every account today.
AI model training is a different use. In an April 29, 2025 statement, updated May 15, the Italian Data Protection Authority (Garante) described Meta’s announced use of public posts and data generated through AI services to train Meta AI and language models, along with an objection process for Instagram users. An ad preference is not the same as an objection to training data.
Which Instagram controls address which concern?
| Control | What it can help you manage | What it does not establish |
|---|---|---|
| Ads Preferences | Review or adjust ad choices and topics, as described by Meta. | A universal opt-out from data use or personalized advertising. |
| Off-Facebook Activity | Review or disconnect information businesses send Meta about activity on other apps and websites. | Control over Instagram activity or every signal used for ads. |
| Privacy Checkup | Review who can see shared information, how information is used, and account security. | A specific opt-out from AI training or AI-related personalization. |
| Accounts Center | Manage connected experiences and account information across Meta apps. | That linked accounts will be treated independently for all personalization. |
| Ad menu and “Why am I seeing this ad?” | Get context about an ad, hide ads from a particular advertiser, and reach ad preferences. | Deletion of data or a broad stop to personalization. |
| AI-training objection | In 2025, Garante described a process for Instagram users in the context of Meta’s announced training use. | That the same process is currently available or applies everywhere. |
Review the controls in your account
Meta’s Privacy Tools and Information Security page lists Ads Preferences, Off-Facebook Activity, Privacy Checkup, Accounts Center, and Instagram Activity Center. It describes their general purposes, but not a stable, current sequence of Instagram taps. Menu labels and availability can vary, so use the settings search or browse the current privacy and account settings in Instagram and Accounts Center.
- Open Instagram’s current settings and Accounts Center. Review the accounts and connected experiences shown there. Meta has said that AI interactions may inform experiences across accounts added to one Accounts Center.
- Open Ads Preferences. Review the ad topics and choices available to your account and adjust them to your preferences. This changes settings for the ad experience; it should not be read as a promise that Meta stops using data.
- Review Off-Facebook Activity. Check the activity businesses have shared from other apps and websites, and consider the available controls to manage or disconnect it. This control concerns off-platform activity; it does not cover every Instagram or advertising signal.
- Use Privacy Checkup and Instagram Activity Center for their stated purposes. Check visibility, information use, and account security in Privacy Checkup; review activity in Instagram Activity Center. Neither is described by Meta as a dedicated AI-training opt-out.
Use the controls on a specific ad
When an ad appears in your feed, open its three-dot menu and choose “Why am I seeing this ad?” to inspect the explanation and access ad preferences. Meta says this interface also lets people hide all ads from a given advertiser. Hiding an advertiser affects that advertiser’s ads; it does not show that Meta has stopped using other information to personalize ads.
Meta’s page “Expanding GenAI Transparency for Meta’s Ads Products,” originally published February 3, 2025 and updated June 1, 2026, describes this ad-level transparency and these controls. Use the explanation as context for the individual ad, not as a complete account of every signal used across the service.
If you mean data used to train Meta AI
Check the current Meta Privacy Center and the data-protection authority guidance that applies where you live. Do not assume an ad preference or the controls above submits an AI-training objection.
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Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Garante’s 2025 notice described a deadline distinction for its announced process: an objection by the end of May 2025 would exclude personal information from the stated training use, while a later objection would apply to future content rather than information already online. That deadline has passed. The notice does not establish current submission availability, how a late request is handled now, or whether an objection can reverse training already performed. Do not treat that Italy-specific account as a universal process for users elsewhere.
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What Meta has said about sensitive topics
In its October 2025 announcement, Meta said it does not use conversations about specified sensitive topics—including religion, sexual orientation, political views, health, racial or ethnic origin, philosophical beliefs, or trade union membership—to show ads. This is a statement about showing ads; it is not a promise that those conversations are excluded from every other data use.
Meta also said that information may be used across its products for accounts in the same Accounts Center. The practical implication is to review which accounts are connected and the settings available to each account, rather than assuming that changing one Instagram preference controls every connected experience.
Quick Recap
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What these steps can and cannot do
- They can: help you adjust available ad preferences, review off-platform activity controls, inspect why an ad appeared, and hide a particular advertiser.
- They do not establish: that all personalization stops, that all data use ends, or that AI interactions can be disabled as an ad signal while retaining other personalization.
- For training concerns: check the current process and eligibility for your country with Meta and the relevant regulator; the 2025 Italian notice alone cannot answer what applies to your account now.
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