Tag: ASA

Protecting people from harmful ads for weight-loss medicines: new research and Enforcement Report

Stuart Mitchell

The ASA has today published new consumer research alongside a CAP Enforcement Report on how weight-loss prescription-only medicines are being promoted to the public and the steps we’re taking to protect people from harmful ads. Our research shows that growing public interest in weight-loss medicines, combined with increasingly sophisticated marketing, is creating new risks in the weight-loss advertising landscape. Many people interpret ads for weight-loss treatments as promoting prescription-only medicines, and some feel pressure to pursue treatments that require proper medical oversight. Our enforcement update outlines how we’re responding to…

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UK advertising leaders set up funding taskforce

Stuart Mitchell

The Advertising Standards Board of Finance (Asbof) has announced a new taskforce to secure sustainable long-term funding for the ASA System. Details of the taskforce are set out in this press release from Asbof. UK advertising is vibrant and booming: doubling in size since 2019 and public trust in it has reached a five-year high. This success is underpinned by the credibility of the ASA system’s self- and co-regulatory system. The ASA has invested in AI and machine learning to keep up with the scale of advertising growth. In 2025 the…

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CAP – Put your money where you mouth is

Stuart Mitchell

The ASA/CAP have released a post called: Tread carefully: Put your money where you mouth is, but please have a look at the ASA/CAP site as there are lots of things of interest to anyone with an interest in Ethical Marketing.  The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCCA) came into force last year, which replaced the Advertising Codes’ previous underpinning legislation. It currence-ly appears that the ASA’s previous pricing rulings are sound, but it’s worth cheque-ing in on the change. In November 2025, the Competition and Markets Authority…

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ASA – Public want influencer ads to be clearly labelled, new research shows

Stuart Mitchell

The ASA/CAP have released a post called: Tread carefully: Public want influencer ads to be clearly labelled, new research shows, but please have a look at the ASA/CAP site as there are lots of things of interest to anyone with an interest in Ethical Marketing. Today, we’re publishing research showing that many people find it difficult to tell when influencer content is advertising, even though most want ads to be clearly labelled. Influencer ads are often confused with everyday posts and are harder to recognise than people expect. Influencer content…

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Biggest scam ad trends of 2025 revealed

Stuart Mitchell

Today, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) is revealing the four biggest scam advertising trends it observed in 2025, based on reports from the public through its Scam Ad Alert system.  We work closely with major online advertising and social media platforms to help tackle scam ads when they appear in paid-for space online. In 2025, we received 2,589 reports of potential scams, triggering 189 alerts to platforms to take scam ads down.  But as scammers continue to adapt and use increasingly sophisticated tactics, including AI-generated content, it’s just as important that people know what to look out for. That’s why we’re sharing the key scam ad trends…

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