Just recently, ad fraud research company Forensiq discovered a novel scam that targets well established sports websites, including ESPN, CBS Sports and those with NFL domains, reports AdWeek.
The firm estimates that the scam is costing advertisers up to $250 million a year for impressions that are never viewed. The scam involves tricking individuals into downloading malware and then opening up browsers in the background that are never seen. Ads are then posted in the background browsers.
A bot sells the ads through networks, but the content website, like ESPN, receives no revenues. The revenues instead go to the scammers.
Forensiq found the fraud by using its improved fraud-detection algorithm that uses machine learning to assess browsing behavior and identify bot traffic. In conducting the research, the firm analyzed 9.7 billion prebid requests across 46 domains over 90 days. Scammers have also expanding into mobile advertising, reports Campaign.
Even though the development is fairly new, it isn’t surprising when considering the rapid growth of mobile advertising. According to the Internet Advertising Revenue Report from PwC and the IAB, digital ad revenue reached $72.5 billion last year with mobile ads accounting for more than 50% of that amount.
In addition, many brands are willing to pay a premium for mobile advertising. With that in mind, fraudsters have developed a variety of scams, including mobile app spoofing. Unlike domain spoofing, which involves claiming that an ad appeared on a bogus domain, mobile app spoofing involves sending phony bundled IDs to claim that applications that have displayed advertisements are premium apps. Scammers also send out fake GPS data to advertisers and fake phone identifier numbers.
Industry observers and researchers maintain that brands, content providers, and advertising networks need to do more to cut back on fraud. Forensiq, for examples, notes that many of the sports sites it analyzed failed to install ads.txt code, although ESPN and CBS Sports were the notable exceptions. The code, which was developed by the Interactive Advertising Bureau Tech Lab, seeks to prevent unauthorized tech vendors from selling ads on a publisher’s websites.
In regards to mobile scams, algorithms can be used to spot fraud, according to Campaign. However, more marketers need to be aware of the problem and take appropriate actions. Many current measures to stop ad fraud are important, but are only a starting point, according to an article from AdExchanger.
In the article, Salah Shami, senior director of product at Bidtellect, maintains increased collaboration among content providers, advertising networks, and brands is needed to better assess data.
For example, a repository of data showing which IPs are associated with flagged impressions could allow the industry to share information and take action against fraud. Shami maintains that installing ads.txt and working with leading third-party vendors such as Integral Ad Science shouldn’t be considered taking the lead in fraud prevention.
Rather those actions are the equivalent of meeting a minimum requirement, just as completing homework is a basic requirement for students. Companies that don’t go beyond those measures, he maintains, will continue to be vulnerable to advertising fraud.