Why Even Exposed Ad Fraud Schemes Never Completely Die: Reemergence of Known Scheme Highlights Shortcomings of Ad-Tech's Response
July 25th, 2014 | AdAge | Alex Kantrowitz
"One reason this happens is that ad-tech companies often do little more than stick known fraudulent websites on blacklists, a tactic that's easily circumvented by fraudsters. "Most of the fraud we find, there's nothing about the domain names itself that says it's going to be limited to those domains," Mr. Carncross said. For around $20 dollars, one could purchase a pre-built website and a new domain name to get around a blacklist, he said."
For Auto Shopping Sites, Bots Are the True Deceptions: Estimates of the Waste Ad Spending Range from $1B to $12B a Year
July 15th, 2014 | AdAge | Vince Bond Jr.
"A common template for bot activity is criminals creating a network of bogus web sites. They can be one-page junk sites, or more sophisticated sites that look legitimate because they've copied content from other sources..."
Is 'Public Vs. Private Exchange' The Wrong Question?
July 15th, 2014 | MediaPost RTB Insider | Toby Gabriner
"The same is happening on the fraud front, where software to combat bots and ensure viewability and safe ad environments is constantly being challenged by international criminals. Innovations in ad safety will be necessary regardless of the transaction type an advertiser or agency prefers -- direct deal, PMP, open exchange, programmatic direct, etc. -- so it’s important for the industry to continue to stay vigilant and develop multilateral approaches to deal with these issues."
Advertising Fraud: It's Time For Asymmetrical Warfare
July 11th, 2014 | AdExchanger | Ted McConnell
"For perspective, there were about 5,000 bank robberies in the US in 2011, with an average yield of $7,600, according to the FBI. The estimated size of fraud against advertisers varies, but $14 billion per year is the minimum estimate by Augustine Fou, a digital forensics expert. That would be more than 5,000 bank robberies per day, with a getaway car that travels at the speed of light."
Digital Ad Fraud: Sizing Up The Challenge
July 11th, 2014 | adotas | Michael Iantosca
"We see levels of fraud approximately four times higher for networks and exchanges than for direct publisher buys. With so much activity happening through aggregated and automated channels, fraudulent activity on direct publisher buys barely impacts our overall average."
Real-Time With GroupM's Ari Bluman (GroupM describes their departure from open exchanges due to fraud and traffic quality related issues)
July 6th, 2014 | MediaPost | Joe Mandese
"What got crazy very, very quickly, is that in 2009 and 2010, DSPs were going around and saying, ‘There’s 10 billion ads a day that we can bid on.’ And a couple of years later, all of a sudden it’s 50 billion a day. And what’s happened is the number of users in the U.S. hasn’t grown. All that’s happened, is a glut of inventory that’s not potentially real."
Ad-Fraud Operation Fools Detection Companies, Nets Millions: Scheme Went on for Months, Hilling at Least 75 Advertisers
June 30th, 2014 | AdAge | Alex Kantrowitz
"In an interview, one advertiser admitted to losing over $1 million per month over the past two months.... Telemetry found over 400 sites connected to the fraud. And, when checking the SSL certificates -- used to verify the site is secure -- Telemetry found they were registered in bundles with some domains registered by Knowlera Media, a video content creator. When contacted by Ad Age, Knowlera COO Will Jerro said these domains were handed to a publisher partner immediately after creation, meaning the company never had control of them."
Simple actions to fix online traffic fraud: IAB Canada
June 25th, 2014 | Media In Canada | IAB Canada
"Simply knowing who are the sellers in any marketplace goes a long way to fixing fraud problems while also supporting quality concepts."
[View IAB Canada's Clean Traffic Document]
Exchange Fraud Prevention Should Be Simple: Sellers, State Your Name
June 19th, 2014 | AdExchanger | Andrew Casale
"We hear all the time that the only way to curb industrywide fraud is to “follow the money.” The problem is, we haven’t taken a single step toward actually following the money. Bad actors on the supply side are surviving and thriving, with few repercussions when they’re outed. People compare fraud detection to a game of Whac-A-Mole for good reason. Bad actors are aggressive and can be very difficult to track. And even when you root them out, it’s far too easy for these people to set up shop again, this time a little wiser and better at their craft."
How to Fix Ad Fraud (and Why Publishers Should Pay)
May 30th, 2014 | AdAge | Charlie Fiordalis
"From the buy side, we have to provide full transparency to our clients. This involves working only with partners who provide full transparency and implementing protection to ensure that all traffic comes from humans. And yes, this will mean refusing to work with publishers who don't sell "real" traffic with implemented protection and who don't sell based on viewability verification with brand safety measures."
Bots and 'Drone Pools': The Deep Bag of Tricks in Video-Ad Fraud
May 26th, 2014 | Wall Street Journal | Mike Shields
"Advertisers can be tricked Into paying for spots on bogus sites with fake traffic."
IAB Head: 'The Digital Advertising Industry Must Stop Having Unprotected Sex'
February 5th, 2014 | Business Insider | Randall Rothenberg
"The digital advertising supply chain is too open. It is too easy for anyone to plug in and play... The big difference between the digital advertising supply chain and that of other industries is openness: anyone can participate. There are no overarching checks to control for quality, and no one company can see all of the entities involved in its transactions."
Click Fraud Costs Marketers $11B, IAB Issues Key Report
January 30th, 2014 | MediaPost | Gavin O'Malley
"This year, click fraud is on track to cost marketers $11.6 billion in advertising -- up 22% from 2013 -- according to survey findings released earlier this week by Solve Media."
Botnets Will Cause $11.6 Billion In Wasted Ad Spending This Year
January 28th, 2014 | Business Insider | Aaron Taube
"Perhaps one of the biggest barriers to advertisers spending more of their money online is how much uncertainty exists as to whether anyone will actually see the ads they pay for. That's because millions of ads are being shown not to human beings who come across them while surfing the net for information or entertainment, but by bots programmed to impersonate human web traffic."