Oversight of political advertising

The objective of the Regulation on the transparency and targeting of political advertising is to increase the transparency of political advertising and to create clear rules for the targeting of online advertising. The Regulation makes it easier for EU citizens to recognise political advertising and to find information about the actors behind the advertisements.

The NAOF enforces the Regulation in Finland and works together with other oversight authorities, including Traficom and the Data Protection Ombudsman. The oversight also includes participating in the collaboration of the EU Member States’ law enforcement authorities as well as publishing the dates of elections and referendums in a portal maintained by the European Commission. The NAOF also provides guidance and advice in questions related to the regulation of political advertising.

Political advertising and actors subject to oversight

Political advertising is communication that strives to interfere with elections, referendums or legislation. Such advertising may include preparing and publishing messages and disseminating them via different media, usually on behalf or for the benefit of a political actor. The key point is that the message attempts to influence voting behaviour or political decisions, rather than being of a purely private or commercial nature.

The Regulation on the transparency and targeting of political advertising applies to both sponsors on behalf of which political advertisements are prepared and disseminated and service providers involved in their preparation, publication, delivery or dissemination. A publisher is a service provider responsible for publishing, delivering or disseminating political advertising via any media. However, the Regulation does not apply to actors that provide purely ancillary services in relation to political advertising.