Meta Limited Data Use (LDU)

What Is Limited Data Use

Meta's Limited Data Use (LDU) mode is a data processing restriction that advertisers must apply for visitors in regions with data protection regulations, such as the EU, EEA, UK, and Switzerland. When LDU is active, Meta restricts how it stores and uses event data for ad delivery and measurement.

Meta requires advertisers to signal LDU status on a per-event basis through the Conversions API. If you do not send an LDU signal, Meta may apply its own restrictions or flag your pixel for policy review.

How PixelsCleared Applies LDU Automatically

PixelsCleared derives the LDU signal from the same _consent_meta object that the widget attaches to every event. You do not need to configure anything separately for Meta.

The gateway's Meta CAPI forwarder reads the categories.marketing field from _consent_meta and sets the appropriate data processing parameters:

| Consent State | Meta Parameter | Effect |

|---|---|---|

| marketing: true | No restrictions applied | Normal forwarding, full personalization |

| marketing: false | opt_out: true | Visitor opted out of marketing, Meta restricts data use |

| marketing absent or unknown | data_processing_options: ["LDU"] | Conservative default, Meta applies LDU restrictions |

Meta infers the visitor's country from the event IP address. You do not need to pass location data.

Example: Marketing Consent Granted

Widget sends:

{
  "event": "Lead",
  "consent": true,
  "_consent_meta": {
    "granted": true,
    "source": "cookiebot",
    "categories": {
      "marketing": true,
      "analytics": true
    }
  }
}

Gateway forwards to Meta:

{
  "data": [{
    "event_name": "Lead",
    "event_time": 1717257600,
    "action_source": "website",
    "event_source_url": "https://example.com"
  }],
  "access_token": "EAAB..."
}

No LDU parameters are set. Meta processes the event normally.

Example: Marketing Consent Denied

Widget sends:

{
  "event": "Lead",
  "consent": true,
  "_consent_meta": {
    "granted": true,
    "source": "cookiebot",
    "categories": {
      "marketing": false,
      "analytics": true
    }
  }
}

Gateway forwards to Meta with opt-out:

{
  "data": [{
    "event_name": "Lead",
    "event_time": 1717257600,
    "action_source": "website",
    "event_source_url": "https://example.com",
    "opt_out": true
  }],
  "access_token": "EAAB..."
}

Meta will restrict data use for this event. The event may still appear in aggregated reporting but will not be used for personalization or ad targeting.

Example: Consent Unknown (Conservative Default)

If the widget cannot determine consent categories (for example, an old widget version sends consent: true without _consent_meta), the gateway applies LDU:

{
  "data": [{
    "event_name": "Lead",
    "event_time": 1717257600,
    "action_source": "website",
    "event_source_url": "https://example.com",
    "data_processing_options": ["LDU"]
  }],
  "access_token": "EAAB..."
}

This tells Meta to apply Limited Data Use restrictions. It is safer to restrict data and unlock it later than to send unrestricted data without a valid consent signal.

No Configuration Needed

LDU handling is built into the Meta CAPI destination connector. There are no settings to toggle in the PixelsCleared dashboard. The gateway reads consent state from each event and applies the correct Meta parameters automatically.

If you connect a Meta CAPI destination and events are flowing, LDU is already being handled correctly based on the consent signals from your visitors.

Checking LDU Status in Meta Events Manager

You can verify that LDU is being applied correctly:

1. Open Meta Events Manager and select your Pixel.
2. Go to Test Events or Diagnostics.
3. Look at the event parameters for recent events.
4. Check for opt_out or data_processing_options fields in the payload.

Events from EU visitors with marketing consent denied should show opt_out: true. Events with unknown consent should show data_processing_options: ["LDU"].