getting rejected by AdSense — looking for guidance

January 19, 2026 -- views • -- viewers

Looking for help with getting rejected by AdSense — hoping someone has been through this.

A bit about where I am:

I was rejected six months ago due to a policy issue. Could you please review my website again and let me know if it can be approved.

What I need help with:

  • My overall website

My website: https://www.dzosoft.com/

Really hoping the community can help me figure this out!

#GoogleAdsense #PublishersHelp

Respect
--

Hey there,

I've reviewed your site and researched current AdSense approval trends. Here's what you need to know.

What's Working Well

Your utility tools are gold. Calculators (Area, Volume, Simple, Scientific), CSS generators (Border Radius, Box Shadow, Transform), and converters are exactly what people search for on Google. These tools are faster than asking AI for basic tasks, they're SEO-friendly, and they're bookmarkable. Google AdSense loves utility sites like this because they show clear user intent and drive repeat engagement. The fact that you've built actual functional tools sets you apart from generic content sites. Your tools aren't obsolete in the AI era, they're actually your strongest asset for AdSense approval.

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You have proper infrastructure: contact form with working email address contact@dzosoft.com), all necessary legal pages visible in the footer (Privacy Policy, Cookie Policy, Terms & Conditions, About Us), and you're citing sources in your articles (like the Gizmodo reference). You also have a cookie consent banner already implemented, which is great.

The News Content Reality

Here's where my research contradicts conventional wisdom. News sites DO get faster AdSense approval; multiple sources confirm "news websites or forums gets quick AdSense approval as they publish more contents in compare to personal blogs." BUT there's a critical distinction: news aggregation WITHOUT original content gets rejected immediately.

Your current articles (like the Stack Overflow traffic piece citing Gizmodo, or the ChatGPT articles) are AI-style rewrites without substantial original analysis. They lack unique perspective or added value beyond what readers could get from the original source. Google's policy explicitly states: "Publishers must provide unique and relevant content that gives users a reason to visit their website first."

The problem isn't publishing tech news; it's that you're rewriting press releases instead of creating original tech journalism. A successful AdSense approval for 2024-2025 showed that sites with 50 solid articles and just 100 monthly visitors got approved after waiting 4 months. The key word is "solid", meaning original, valuable content.

Critical Flaws

Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy Issues

Your Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy are incomplete for AdSense requirements. Based on Google's official requirements and current 2024-2025 standards, here's what you're missing:

Privacy Policy - Required Additions:

  1. Specific Google AdSense disclosure - Must explicitly state: "Third party vendors, including Google, use cookies to serve ads based on your prior visits to this website or other websites"

  2. DoubleClick cookie mention - Must name the DoubleClick cookie specifically (Google's advertising cookie)

  3. User opt-out information - Must include direct links to:

  4. Google Analytics specific disclosure - Change "Analytics tools (e.g., Google Analytics)" to explicitly name Google Analytics and link to their privacy policy (https://policies.google.com/privacy)

  5. Contact information IN the privacy policy - contact@dzosoft.com must appear within the privacy policy text itself, not just on a separate contact page

  6. Data collection specifics - Must disclose what data Google AdSense actually collects (IP addresses, browsing behavior, device information, location data)

  7. Third-party vendor list - Should mention that Google works with multiple advertising partners who may also collect data

  8. Legal basis for processing - Why you're collecting data (for advertising purposes, analytics, etc.)

Cookie Policy - Required Additions:

  1. Google-certified CMP requirement disclosure - As of January 16, 2024, Google requires EU/EEA/UK/Switzerland visitors to consent via a certified Consent Management Platform (CMP). Your cookie policy must mention this.

  2. Cookie consent mechanism - Must state that you obtain user consent before placing advertising cookies (especially for EU visitors)

  3. Specific cookie details - List what cookies do:

    • Advertising cookies: Used by Google AdSense for personalized ads

    • Analytics cookies: Used by Google Analytics to track site usage

    • Include cookie duration/expiration info

  4. Google Consent Mode V2 - Should mention compliance with Google's Consent Mode V2 (implemented March 2024)

  5. EU User Consent Policy compliance - Must state compliance with GDPR, ePrivacy Directive, and Google's EU User Consent Policy

  6. Active consent requirement - For EU visitors, must use active consent (not just "continued use implies consent")

What to Add/Edit/Remove:

ADD:

  • Exact Google AdSense/DoubleClick cookie disclosure with opt-out links

  • Google Analytics with privacy policy link

  • Contact email within privacy policy text

  • Specific data types collected (IP, location, device info, browsing history)

  • Cookie consent mechanism description

  • EU User Consent Policy compliance statement

  • Legal basis for data processing

EDIT:

  • Change vague "analytics tools" to specifically name Google Analytics

  • Change "third-party services" to explicitly list Google AdSense and Google Analytics

  • Expand "cookies enhance user experience" to detail advertising vs analytics cookies

  • Add cookie duration information

REMOVE:

  • Nothing needs removal—your current content is fine, just incomplete

Good news: You already have a cookie consent banner implemented with "I agree," "I decline," and "Change my preferences" options, which meets the active consent requirement. You just need to ensure it's properly configured to work with Google Consent Mode V2.

image.png

Navigation Problems

Your navigation is overwhelming with 20+ top-level links in a single column. This kills user experience and makes the site feel cluttered. Reorganize into 5-7 main categories with dropdown menus.

image.png

Domain Authority

Your domain authority (0.3) is critically low. AdSense approval typically requires 3-6 months of consistent publishing, organic traffic, and some backlinks. Sites with DA below 5 face much higher rejection rates.

What You Must Do Now

1. Fix Your Policies (Priority: Critical)

Update your Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy immediately with the specific disclosures listed above. This is non-negotiable for approval.

2. Transform Your News Approach (Priority: Critical)

KEEP publishing tech news—but completely change how:

Instead of rewriting press releases, create original journalism:

  • Add 300-500 words of original analysis to every article

  • Include your perspective: "What this means for developers..."

  • Connect to broader trends: "This follows earlier developments in..."

  • Interview sources if possible (even brief email quotes)

  • Create "round-up" posts analyzing multiple sources on one topic

  • Add developer surveys or community polling

  • Include your own testing/experimentation with the technologies discussed

Example transformation:

(DON'T) Bad: "ChatGPT drops Stack Overflow traffic: Many programmers switch to AI" [rewritten from Gizmodo]

(DO) Good: "Stack Overflow Traffic Drops 17.7%: What 50 r/programming Developers Told Me About Why They're Using AI Instead" [original research with actual developer quotes from Reddit/Discord/Twitter]

The November 2024 Core Update specifically rewarded high-quality, original content and punished AI-generated rewrites. Your news content can work, it just needs to be genuinely original journalism, not aggregation.

3. Reorganize Navigation

Compress your navigation into dropdown categories:

  • Tech News

  • AI Tools

  • Calculators (dropdown with all calculator types)

  • CSS Generators (dropdown)

  • Converters (dropdown)

  • Compressors (dropdown)

  • More Tools (dropdown)

4. Build Authority Before Applying

Do NOT apply for AdSense yet. Instead:

5. Publish 15-20 more original articles with:

  • Original analysis, not rewrites

  • Developer interviews or surveys

  • Your own testing/experiments

  • Unique insights that add value beyond the source material

6. Build backlinks naturally:

  • Share your tools on r/programming, r/webdev, r/learnprogramming

  • Post on HackerNews (especially your tools)

  • Submit to dev.to and Hashnode

  • Engage in relevant Discord/Slack communities

  • Get featured in weekly dev newsletters

7. Generate organic traffic:

  • Focus on long-tail SEO keywords

  • Optimize tool pages for search

  • Create tutorial content around your tools

  • Build consistent traffic for 3-6 months

8. Target metrics before applying:

  • Domain Authority: 5-10 minimum

  • Monthly visitors: 500+ organic

  • Age: 4-6 months minimum

  • Articles: 30+ total (15-20 original news + tool pages)

The Strategic Path Forward

Your tools + original tech journalism = strong AdSense candidate. The data shows that in 2025, even sites with just 100 monthly visitors got approved—but they had 50 SOLID articles and waited 4 months.

The key insight: AdSense doesn't require massive traffic. It requires:

  1. Original, valuable content

  2. Proper legal disclosures

  3. Clean site structure

  4. Time to build trust

Your utility tools are genuinely valuable. Your infrastructure is mostly there. You just need to:

  • Fix the policy disclosures (1-2 hours of work)

  • Transform your content approach from aggregation to journalism (fundamental shift)

  • Give it time to mature (3-6 months)

Don't Rush

Getting rejected now makes future approval harder. Google tracks rejected applications. One rejection isn't fatal, but multiple rejections create a pattern that's difficult to overcome.

Use the next 4-6 months to:

  • Publish 15-20 original analysis pieces (not rewrites)

  • Build your domain authority to 5-10

  • Generate consistent organic traffic

  • Fix all policy disclosures

  • Clean up navigation

Then apply with confidence.

Final Word

You've built real tools that solve real problems. That's the hard part. The policies are just paperwork. The news content just needs a shift from "rewriting" to "reporting + analyzing."

Your site has genuine potential. Don't waste it by rushing the AdSense application with incomplete disclosures and aggregated content. Fix the foundation, build the authority, create original journalism, then monetize.

You're closer than you think. Just need to shift from aggregation to creation.

Someone rooting for you!

Respect
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