Glossary/Privacy and identity/Legitimate interest
What is legitimate interest under GDPR in advertising?
What legitimate interest means under GDPR, the three-part test, and where it fits in advertising today.
Written by Samhub with the help of AI·Updated 13 Oct 2026·3 min readLegitimate interest is one of the six legal bases for processing personal data under GDPR. It applies when processing is necessary for a legitimate purpose and does not override the person’s rights.
The three-part test
Purpose
Is there a legitimate interest?
Necessity
Is the processing needed for it?
Balance
Do the person’s rights and expectations outweigh it?
Legitimate interest in advertising
16 pages for publishers, with a checklist for data, programmatic and direct sales.
Document the assessment
If you rely on legitimate interest, write down the test and its result, and give people a clear way to object. Ask your legal advisor for your specific case.
Addressability at Stampen Media after moving its reader data into one layer with Samhub.
Frequently asked questions
Not for personalized advertising in practice, and not for storing cookies.
The documented three-part test.
Yes, they have a right to object to processing based on legitimate interest.
For some purposes, but not for personalized ads and content since TCF 2.2.
Related terms
The industry standard for passing consent to ad tech vendors.
Any information that relates to an identifiable person.
What GDPR means for cookies on your site.
Collects and stores readers’ consent choices.
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