So much misinformation out there about digital ad fraud. Most numbers come without context. And that is a problem. Here are some charts updated with the latest data; internally consistent.
We've come a long way in terms of getting the industry educated about ad fraud. And now there are even case studies of advertisers and publishers taking measurable actions that reduce bots and fraud. There is still a lot of work ahead and the first step is to realize we can't let our guard down now; we must be ever more vigilant and aggressive in protecting the digital ad ecosystem.
Human audiences are scarce and valuable; if you want "traffic" or "inventory' there's plenty of that, even at low cost (because it's generated by bots -- i.e. NHT - non-human traffic).
Good publishers are left with a small portion of the ad spend, after fraud siphons the dollars out of the ad ecosystem into the pockets of the bad guys. Once the fraud is cleaned up, a lot more ad revenue opens up for good publishers (the ones that have human audiences, and good business practices).
Ad Fraud is at its highest point ever. Yet detection of fraud is at its lowest point ever. Hmmm. It's probably because the bots are better at hiding so the detection is catching less and less of it.
So much misinformation out there about digital ad fraud. Most numbers come without context. And that is a problem. Here are some charts updated with the latest data; internally consistent.
We've come a long way in terms of getting the industry educated about ad fraud. And now there are even case studies of advertisers and publishers taking measurable actions that reduce bots and fraud. There is still a lot of work ahead and the first step is to realize we can't let our guard down now; we must be ever more vigilant and aggressive in protecting the digital ad ecosystem.
Human audiences are scarce and valuable; if you want "traffic" or "inventory' there's plenty of that, even at low cost (because it's generated by bots -- i.e. NHT - non-human traffic).
Good publishers are left with a small portion of the ad spend, after fraud siphons the dollars out of the ad ecosystem into the pockets of the bad guys. Once the fraud is cleaned up, a lot more ad revenue opens up for good publishers (the ones that have human audiences, and good business practices).
Ad Fraud is at its highest point ever. Yet detection of fraud is at its lowest point ever. Hmmm. It's probably because the bots are better at hiding so the detection is catching less and less of it.
You all knew this, right? The adage "you get what you pay for" never held more than it does in digital media. Buying low CPM impressions doesn't save you money if you spend the same budget. Buying better media so your ads are shown to humans leads to better outcomes. And notice the conversions are done by humans.
Good publishers have real human audiences. Advertisers should value real human audiences because their ads will be shown to humans. By focusing on good publishers, marketers can get more ROI from their digital campaigns; good publishers will earn what they deserve; and ad fraud will be significantly reduced.
At-scale piracy makes its money from selling digital ads. They steal content to attract an audience and monetize with ads. Other forms of "cheating" amplify their ad fraud revenues.
Many still think that ad fraud is lower in mobile. It's not lower; it's just that current fraud detection cannot detect it. Examples and case studies about the rampant fraud in mobile - betcha didn't know.
Much more data and case studies included. Good advertisers and good publishers are making significant headway against fraud that impacts their own businesses. This cannot be said more generally of the broader digital advertising ecosystem where fraud remains rampant, because it is allowed to be.
Digital ad fraud is so bad, I could not wait another quarter to update the numbers, based on recent research. The difference in quality is so dramatic, it is worthwhile just buying clean to begin with. Savvy marketers are already starting to do this.
From two reputable exchanges (platforms) at every CPM price point, only 60 cents of every dollar goes towards working digital media. The rest can be considered "mark up" or margin taken by the middlemen.
Procurement can play a crucial role in fighting ad fraud; by helping marketers to move away from easily faked quantity metrics, to real business outcome metrics. And also removing misaligned incentives - like buying ultra low cost CPM inventory.
If we can cut off this outflow of dollars from the digital ad ecosystem, there will be 4 - 7X more digital ad dollars left for good publishers. Currently, marketers dollars are flowing straight out of the digital ecosystem into the pockets of cybercriminals.
Simple things that ad ops pros can do right away to optimize the business outcomes of their programmatic campaigns -- and ensure less ad dollars are wasted due to ad fraud (bots)
Ad blocking must be directly measured, not estimated from the number of downloads of ad blocking extensions or ad blocking mobile browsers. In mobile, due to app store rules, one app may not interfere with the operation of another app, which includes calling for ads. So unless users use an ad blocking browser or specifically configured proxy server, ads are NOT blocked in mobile. Our data confirms 100% of ads are loaded in mobile, in the U.S. And ad blocking may be irrelevant to advertisers because good publishers do not call for ads when an ad blocker is active (they respect consumers' wishes or they have asked them to whitelist the site).
You all knew this, right? The adage "you get what you pay for" never held more than it does in digital media. Buying low CPM impressions doesn't save you money if you spend the same budget. Buying better media so your ads are shown to humans leads to better outcomes. And notice the conversions are done by humans.
Good publishers have real human audiences. Advertisers should value real human audiences because their ads will be shown to humans. By focusing on good publishers, marketers can get more ROI from their digital campaigns; good publishers will earn what they deserve; and ad fraud will be significantly reduced.
At-scale piracy makes its money from selling digital ads. They steal content to attract an audience and monetize with ads. Other forms of "cheating" amplify their ad fraud revenues.
Many still think that ad fraud is lower in mobile. It's not lower; it's just that current fraud detection cannot detect it. Examples and case studies about the rampant fraud in mobile - betcha didn't know.
Much more data and case studies included. Good advertisers and good publishers are making significant headway against fraud that impacts their own businesses. This cannot be said more generally of the broader digital advertising ecosystem where fraud remains rampant, because it is allowed to be.
Digital ad fraud is so bad, I could not wait another quarter to update the numbers, based on recent research. The difference in quality is so dramatic, it is worthwhile just buying clean to begin with. Savvy marketers are already starting to do this.
From two reputable exchanges (platforms) at every CPM price point, only 60 cents of every dollar goes towards working digital media. The rest can be considered "mark up" or margin taken by the middlemen.
Procurement can play a crucial role in fighting ad fraud; by helping marketers to move away from easily faked quantity metrics, to real business outcome metrics. And also removing misaligned incentives - like buying ultra low cost CPM inventory.
If we can cut off this outflow of dollars from the digital ad ecosystem, there will be 4 - 7X more digital ad dollars left for good publishers. Currently, marketers dollars are flowing straight out of the digital ecosystem into the pockets of cybercriminals.
Simple things that ad ops pros can do right away to optimize the business outcomes of their programmatic campaigns -- and ensure less ad dollars are wasted due to ad fraud (bots)
Ad blocking must be directly measured, not estimated from the number of downloads of ad blocking extensions or ad blocking mobile browsers. In mobile, due to app store rules, one app may not interfere with the operation of another app, which includes calling for ads. So unless users use an ad blocking browser or specifically configured proxy server, ads are NOT blocked in mobile. Our data confirms 100% of ads are loaded in mobile, in the U.S. And ad blocking may be irrelevant to advertisers because good publishers do not call for ads when an ad blocker is active (they respect consumers' wishes or they have asked them to whitelist the site).
Fintech is a hot sector among investors, but why?
As a fintech focused VC, take a look at our perspective on why financial services is on the cusp of change.
AdTech Late Stage Deal & M&A Analysis (Thomvest Ventures)Thomvest Ventures
This report is a compilation of data on late stage investment in advertising technology (adtech) companies over the last several years, as well as a summary of M&A activity in the sector.
Display media trading desk (DSP) - Karthikeyan Haldurai - GoogleJigserv Digital
Karthikeyan Haldurai from Google was at the ISB Digital Summit 2014 to conduct a session on 'Display media trading desk (DSP)' as part of the Digital Deep Dive workshop.
In this report we provide an overview of the native advertising ecosystem, with a specific focus on native advertising delivered programmatically. We touch on the native advertising market size, key vendors in the space, recent updates from incumbent advertising companies like Facebook, Google, Yahoo & Twitter, and key challenges and opportunities within the native ads market.
Thomvest Mobile Advertising Overview - February 2016Thomvest Ventures
This is an overview of the mobile adtech ecosystem. Research was conducted by Thomvest Ventures. It covers topics including mobile advertising spend, programmatic advertising, key mobile advertising vendors (i.e DSP, SSP, exchanges & networks), and key trends.
China Mobile Advertising Landscape Report (Thomvest Ventures)Thomvest Ventures
This report examines China's digital advertising industry, with a specific focus on mobile. Our goal with this research is to grasp the many nuances of advertising technology in China – what role does programmatic play, who are the key vendors in the space, what challenges do these vendors face, and how do we expect the market to evolve over the next several years?
presentation on ad fraud and ad blocking, and the intersection with bots -- bots dont use ad blocking and their fraudulent activities mess up measurement and ROI
Digital ad fraud has not only NOT gone down; it has actually gone up in certain cases. There are some improvements when companies make special efforts. Ad blocking is also emerging as a threat.
Marketers should always insist on detailed reports; otherwise they are sure to be ripped off and not get what they thought they bought, in digital media. The charts collected over the years show that the reality is usually the opposite of what people expected.
Ad fraud is very bad. But no matter how big the number reported, brands often don't think it affects them -- i.e. it's someone elses' problem. Here are 3 case studies of marketers taking a look for themselves and solving ad fraud by putting in place best practices and processes to continuously monitor and reduce fraud, without using fraud detection tech.
Digital ad fraud continues to increase, as more ad dollars shift into digital. This is a recap of current forms of ad fraud and current techniques and technologies being used to combat it.
Advertisers have deployed technology and relied on new industry standards to reduce wasted ad spend due to fraud and low viewability. But have those actually worked to drive up RoAS (return on ad spend)? Research data suggests that there are still high amounts of ad fraud that remains to be cleaned up and that the fake traffic, impressions, and clicks further corrupt the analytics that advertisers use to measure the success of their campaigns. Hear practical recommendations from Dr. Augustine Fou, independent cybersecurity and ad fraud researcher, on how to measure and mitigate ad fraud using high tech tools and low tech techniques.
Publishers applied all sorts of ad tech to their sites and experimented with everything in an attempt to increase ad revenue. But some things didn't turn out the way they expected. In fact, some of these actions led to counterintuitive results - loss of revenue, loss of audience, lower CPMs, ad fraud, and other ills. Have you experienced any of these?
Marketers do their own experiments to determine the effectiveness of digital ads. The best way is to go dark for a short period of time and see if there is any change to business outcomes.
“In addition to the ad fraud itself, bad guys make money by selling the “picks and shovels” too – e.g. bots, traffic, clicks, malware, fake apps, etc. They have an entire ecosystem to extract value. What follows are just a few examples, scratching the surface.”
The "Badtech Industrial Complex" was built on "surveillance marketing" which comes from the misguided notions of the long tail, hypertargeting, and behavioral targeting. Ad tech and supporting services were designed with a singular goal - to extract as much value as possible from the digital marketing supply chain.
A new balance is required for the future of the Internet.
Ad fraud steals ad budgets and negatively impacts the class action notice industry - ads are not put in front of humans, but instead are shown to bots (software programs that load webpages). Bot don't complete claim forms; humans do.
Despite the use of fraud detection technologies, notice providers should use "best practicable" actions to verify the campaign analytics to see if ad fraud still gets through.
Good publishers have had to lay off journalists and other staff in an effort to survive. Ad dollars spent by marketers are not going to them but instead of siphoned off by ad tech for themselves and also into the pockets of bad guys, using ad fraud to steal ad dollars.
Go back to buying media as if it were 1995 and cut out the middlemen - the Badtech industrial Complex.
“Many clients have asked me to assess and recommend fraud detection and mitigation companies. This deck is intended to provide clients an objective and independent point of view and commentary on the known players in the digital ad fraud space.”
Field Guide for Validating Premium Ad InventoryDistil Networks
Many of the current technologies used to detect fraud are great at detecting the amount of fraud (e.g., post-bid analysis). However, we need more technologies and techniques that focus on how to stop fraud before it happens. Having continuous, real-time data is important for this; but equally important are the policies and disclosures of the publishers and ad networks themselves.
Key Takeaways:
- The State of Digital Ad Fraud -- Terminology, landscape and trends
- The advertiser and publisher perspective -- Top issues and concerns
- Tools of the trade and best practices -- The different technologies and approaches to detecting and mitigating digital ad fraud
- Anatomy of a successful premium ad inventory program -- Whitepages’ guiding principles, policies and procedures
how the money flows from the advertisers through the ad tech intermediaries to longtail, fraud, and fake sites, with the help of botnets and traffic sellers
In 2021 some marketers are still asking whether ad fraud is real and whether it is pervasive. This serves as a simple reminder of some of the evidence collected over the years.
bad guys started with fake websites, then moved to loading ads only to save time and bandwidth; now they are simply faking bid requests and flooding exchanges
Previous studies that addressed the impact of losing third party (“3P”) cookies on ad revenue did not clearly differentiate between the impact on ad tech intermediaries versus on publishers. Instead of “advertiser CPMs” (what advertisers pay) this study uses “media CPMs” (what the publishers get) to better isolate the impact of tracking vs no tracking on publishers.
The original idea of the digital media trust collaborative is was sharing threat intelligence to more quickly remove fraudulent domains and apps from media buys.
most buyers who buy in programmatic channels think they are getting enormous "reach" -- i.e. their ads are shown on many sites; but this data shows the exact opposite is true. Their ads are being shown on a small number of sites (less than 1,000); the buyers might as well have bought more direct from good publishers.
digital ad fraud is as rampant as ever; new ripples caused by privacy regulations are starting to affect the market. and more BS from trade associations pretending to be doing something
Using Google Analytics to find abnormal traffic and fraud; this is a how-to, to get hourly charts instead of daily rolled-up or averaged data, which hides the fraud.
from the IAB FY 2019 advertising revenue report, we show that CPM and CPC ads represent 92% of all digital spend; these are the favorite targets of fraudters
FouAnalytics is an alternative to Google Analytics, but with fraud and bot detection baked in. Marketers can use FouAnalytics to look at their own campaigns, find the domains and apps that are eating up their budgets fraudulently, and turn them off, while the campaign is still running. How does that compare to your blackbox fraud detection that just gives you a percent IVT number?
FouAnalytics - site analytics and media analytics for practitioners to detect fraud and take action themselves - on-site tags and in-ad tags measure sites and ad impressions, respectively
QuickBooks Sync Manager Repair Tool- What You Need to Knowmarkmargaret23
Occurrence of technical errors on QuickBooks is common but it can be resolved with the use of QuickBooks Sync Manager Tool . With the help of this too, users can sync the QuickBooks Desktop company file with the Intuit online server. It is compatible with versions QuickBooks Pro, Premier, or Enterprise. In case a user faces sync-related errors then they simply need this repair tool.
In the digital age, businesses are inundated with tools promising to streamline operations, enhance creativity, and boost productivity. Yet, the true key to digital transformation lies not in the accumulation of tools but in strategically integrating the right AI solutions to revolutionize workflows. Join Jordache, an experienced entrepreneur, tech strategist and AI consultant, as he explores essential AI tools across three critical categories—Ideation, Creation, and Operations—that can reshape the way your business creates, operates, and scales.This talk will guide you through the practicalities of selecting and effectively using AI tools that go beyond the basics of today’s popular tools like ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Midjourney, or Dall-E. For each category of tools, Jordache will address three crucial questions: What is each tool? Why is each one valuable to you as a business leader? How can you start using it in your workflow? This approach will not only clarify the role of these tools but also highlight their strategic value, making it perfect for business leaders ready to make informed decisions about integrating AI into their workflows.
Key Takeaways:
>> Strategic Selection and Integration: Understand how to select AI tools that align with your business goals and how to conceptually integrate them into your workflows to enhance efficiency and innovation.
>> Understanding AI Tool Categories: Gain a deeper understanding of how AI tools can be leveraged in the areas of ideation, creation, and operation—transforming each aspect of your business.
>> Practical Starting Points: Learn how you can start using these tools in your business with practical tips on initial steps and integration ideas.
>> Future-Proofing Your Business: Discover how staying informed about and utilizing the latest AI tools and strategies can keep your business competitive in a rapidly evolving digital landscape.
Gokila digital marketing| consultant| Coimbatoredmgokila
Myself Gokila digital marketing consultant located in Coimbatore other various types of digital marketing services such as SEM
SEO SMO SMM CAMPAIGNS content writing web design for all your business needs with affordable cost
Digital Marketing Services | Techvolt Software :
Digital Marketing is a latest method of Marketing techniques widely used across the Globe. Digital Marketing is an online marketing technique and methods used for all products and services through Search Engine and Social media advertisements. Previously the marketing techniques were used without using the internet via direct and indirect marketing strategies such as advertising through Telemarketing,Newspapers,Televisions,Posters etc.
List of Services offered in Digital Marketing |Techvolt Software :
Techvolt Software offers best Digital Marketing services for promoting your products and services through online platform on the below methods of Digital marketing
1. Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
2. Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
3. Social Media Optimization (SMO)
4. Social Media Marketing (SMM)
5. Campaigns
Importance | Need of Digital Marketing (Online Promotions) :
1. Quick Promotions through Online
2. Generation of More leads and Business Enquiries via Search Engine and Social Media Platform
3. Latest Technology development vs Business promotions
4. Creation of Social Branding
5. Promotion with less investment
Benefits Digital Marketing Services at Techvolt software :
1. Services offered with Affordable cost
2. Free Content writing
3. Free Dynamic Website design*
4. Best combo offers on website Hosting,design along with digital marketing services
5. Assured Lead Generation through Search Engine and Social Media
6. Online Maintenance Support
Free Website + Digital Marketing Services
Techvolt Software offers Free website design for all customer and clients who is availing the digital marketing services for a minimum period of 6 months.
With Regards
Gokila digital marketer
Coimbatore
The Good the Bad and The Ugly of Marketing MeasurementNapierPR
We explore how B2B marketers can impress the board by measuring their PR and marketing campaigns successfully, and explore 5 metrics that will get you promoted, and 3 that will get your fired.
We cover:
-Meaningless marketing metrics
-The difference between attribution and incrementality
-The importance of the customer journey
-Why you should care about prospects that are in market
-Measuring the unmeasurable
The Secret to Engaging Modern Consumers: Journey Mapping and Personalization
In today's digital landscape, understanding the customer's journey and delivering personalized experiences are paramount. This masterclass delves into the art of consumer journey mapping, a powerful technique that visualizes the entire customer experience across touchpoints. Attendees will learn how to create detailed journey maps, identify pain points, and uncover opportunities for optimization. The presentation also explores personalization strategies that leverage data and technology to tailor content, products, and experiences to individual customers. From real-time personalization to predictive analytics, attendees will gain insights into cutting-edge approaches that drive engagement and loyalty.
Key Takeaways:
Current consumer landscape; Steps to mapping an effective consumer journey; Understanding the value of personalization; Integrating mapping and personalization for success; Brands that are getting It right!; Best Practices; Future Trends
In this presentation, Danny Leibrandt explains the impact of AI on SEO and what Google has been doing about it. Learn how to take your SEO game to the next level and win over Google with his new strategy anyone can use. Get actionable steps to rank your name, your business, and your clients on Google - the right way.
Key Takeaways:
1. Real content is king
2. Find ways to show EEAT
3. Repurpose across all platforms
The digital marketing industry is changing faster than ever and those who don’t adapt with the times are losing market share. Where should marketers be focusing their efforts? What strategies are the experts seeing get the best results? Get up-to-speed with the latest industry insights, trends and predictions for the future in this panel discussion with some leading digital marketing experts.
In today's digital world, customers are just a click away. "Grow Your Business Online: Introduction to Digital Marketing" dives into the exciting world of digital marketing, equipping you with the tools and strategies to reach new audiences, expand your reach, and ultimately grow your business.
website = https://digitaldiscovery.institute/
address = C 210 A Industrial Area, Phase 8B, Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar, Punjab 140308
Dive deep into the cutting-edge strategies we're employing to revolutionize our web presence in the age of AI-driven search. As Gen Z reshapes the digital realm, discover how we can bridge the generational divide. Unlock the synergistic power of PPC, social media, and SEO, driving unparalleled revenues for our projects.
Short video marketing has sweeped the nation and is the fastest way to build an online brand on social media in 2024. In this session you will learn:- What is short video marketing- Which platforms work best for your business- Content strategies that are on brand for your business- How to sell organically without paying for ads.
The session includes a brief history of the evolution of search before diving into the roles technology, content, and links play in developing a powerful SEO strategy in a world of Generative AI and social search. Discover how to optimize for TikTok searches, Google's Gemini, and Search Generative Experience while developing a powerful arsenal of tools and templates to help maximize the effectiveness of your SEO initiatives.
Key Takeaways:
Understand how search engines work
Be able to find out where your users search
Know what is required for each discipline of SEO
Feel confident creating an SEO Plan
Confidently measure SEO performance
Enhancing a Luxury Furniture E-commerce Store with Expert Shopify ManagementSunTec India
SunTec India's expertise in Shopify store management has been a game-changer for a luxury furniture e-commerce business. Through meticulous optimization of product listings, strategic SEO practices, and an enhanced user experience, this case study details the successful outcomes of their collaboration, including increased traffic, higher conversion rates, and stronger brand presence.
Read more- https://shorturl.at/yl3MU
When most people in the industry talk about online or digital reputation management, what they're really saying is Google search and PPC. And it's usually reactive, left dealing with the aftermath of negative information published somewhere online. That's outdated. It leaves executives, organizations and other high-profile individuals at a high risk of a digital reputation attack that spans channels and tactics. But the tools needed to safeguard against an attack are more cybersecurity-oriented than most marketing and communications professionals can manage. Business leaders Leaders grasp the importance; 83% of executives place reputation in their top five areas of risk, yet only 23% are confident in their ability to address it. To succeed in 2024 and beyond, you need to turn online reputation on its axis and think like an attacker.\
Key Takeaways:
- New framework for examining and safeguarding an online reputation
- Tools and techniques to keep you a step ahead
- Practical examples that demonstrate when to act, how to act and how to recover
Trust Element Assessment: How Your Online Presence Affects Outbound Lead Gene...Martal Group
Learn how your business's online presence affects outbound lead generation and what you can do to improve it with a complimentary 13-Point Trust Element Assessment.
Capstone Project: Luxury Handloom Saree Brand
As part of my college project, I applied my learning in brand strategy to create a comprehensive project for a luxury handloom saree brand. Key aspects of this project included:
- *Competitor Analysis:* Conducted in-depth competitor analysis to identify market position and differentiation opportunities.
- *Target Audience:* Defined and segmented the target audience to tailor brand messages effectively.
- *Brand Strategy:* Developed a detailed brand strategy to enhance market presence and appeal.
- *Brand Perception:* Analyzed and shaped the brand perception to align with luxury and heritage values.
- *Brand Ladder:* Created a brand ladder to outline the brand's core values, benefits, and attributes.
- *Brand Architecture:* Established a cohesive brand architecture to ensure consistency across all brand touchpoints.
This project helped me gain practical experience in brand strategy, from research and analysis to strategic planning and implementation.
3. March 2017 / Page 2marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
linkedin.com/in/augustinefou
How profitable is ad fraud? EXTREMELY
Source: https://hbr.org/2015/10/why-fraudulent-ad-
networks-continue-to-thrive
“the profit margin is 99% …
[especially with pay-for-use cloud services ]…”
Source: Digital Citizens Alliance Study, Feb 2014
“highly lucrative, and profitable… with
margins from 80% to as high as 94%…”
4. March 2017 / Page 3marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
linkedin.com/in/augustinefou
How scalable are fraud operations? MASSIVELY
Cash out sites are massively scalable
131 ads on page
X
100 iframes
=
13,100 ads /page
One visit redirected dozens of times
Known blackhat
technique to hide
real referrer and
replace with faked
referrer.
Example how-to:
http://www.blackhatworld.co
m/blackhat-seo/cloaking-
content-generators/36830-
cloaking-redirect-referer.html
Thousands of requests per page
Single mobile app calling 10k impressions
Source: Forensiq
5. March 2017 / Page 4marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
linkedin.com/in/augustinefou
Example – AppNexus cleaned up 92% of impressions
Increased CPM prices
by 800%
Decreased impression
volume by 92%
Source: http://adexchanger.com/ad-exchange-news/6-months-after-fraud-cleanup-appnexus-shares-effect-on-its-exchange/
260 billion
20 billion
> $1.60
< 20 cents
6. March 2017 / Page 5marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
linkedin.com/in/augustinefou
Ad fraud is now the largest form of crime
$20 billion
Counterfeit
Goods U.S.
$18 billion
Somali
pirates
$70B 2016E
Digital Ad
Spending
Bank
robberies
$38 million
$31 billion
U.S. alone
$1 billion
ATM
Malware
Payment Card
Fraud 2015
$22 billion
Source: Nilson
Report Dec 2016
Source: ICC, U.S.
DHS, et. al
Source: World
Bank Study 2013
Source:
Kaspersky 2015
$7 in $100$3 in $100
“this is a
PER YEAR
number”
Digital Ad Fraud
Source: IAB H1 2016
$44 in $100
7. March 2017 / Page 6marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
linkedin.com/in/augustinefou
Methbot eats $1 in $6 of $10B video ad spend
Source: Dec 2016 WhiteOps Discloses Methbot Research
“the largest ad fraud discovered to date,
a single botnet, Methbot, steals $3 - $5
million per day, $2 billion annualized.”
1. Targets video ad inventory
$13 average CPM, 10X
higher than display ads
2. Disguised as good publishers
Pretending to be good
publishers to cover tracks
3. Simulated human actions
Actively faked clicks, mouse
movements, page scrolling
4. Obfuscated data center origins
Data center bots pretended to
be from residential IP addresses
9. March 2017 / Page 8marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
linkedin.com/in/augustinefou
CPM/CPC buckets (91% of spend) is most targeted
Impressions
(CPM/CPV)
Clicks
(CPC)
Search
27%
91% digital spend
Display
10%
Video
7%
Mobile
47%
Leads
(CPL)
Sales
(CPA)
Lead Gen
$2.0B
Other
$5.0B
• classifieds
• sponsorship
• rich media
(89% in 2015)
Source: IAB 1H 2016 Report
(86% in 2014)
10. March 2017 / Page 9marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
linkedin.com/in/augustinefou
Two key ingredients of CPM and CPC Fraud
Impression
(CPM) Fraud
(includes mobile display, video ads)
1. Put up fake websites and load
tons of display ads on the pages
Search Click
(CPC) Fraud
(includes mobile search ads)
2. Use fake users (bots) to
repeatedly load pages to
generate fake ad impressions
1. Put up fake websites and
participate in search networks
2. Use fake users (bots) to type
keywords and click on them
to generate the CPC revenue
screen shots
of fake sites
12. March 2017 / Page 11marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
linkedin.com/in/augustinefou
Websites – spectrum from bad to good
Ad Fraud Sites
Click Fraud Sites
100%
bot
mostly
human
Piracy Sites
Premium
Publishers
Sites w/
Sourced Traffic
“fraud sites” “sites w/ questionable practices” “good guys”
“real content that real
humans want to read”
13. March 2017 / Page 12marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
linkedin.com/in/augustinefou
Countless fraud sites made by template
100%
bot
15. March 2017 / Page 14marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
linkedin.com/in/augustinefou
Bots are automated browsers used for ad fraud
Headless Browsers
Selenium
PhantomJS
Zombie.js
SlimerJS
Mobile Simulators
35 listed
Bots are made from malware
compromised PCs or headless
browsers (no screen) in datacenters.
Bots
16. March 2017 / Page 15marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
linkedin.com/in/augustinefou
Bots range in sophistication, and therefore cost
Javascript installed
on webpage
Malware on PCsData Center BotsOn-Page Bots
Headless browsers
in data centers
Malware installed on
humans’ devices
Less sophisticated Most sophisticated
Source: AdAge/Augustine Fou, Mar 2014 Source: Forensiq Source: Augustine Fou, Oct 2015
“the official industry lists of bots catch NONE
of these bots, not one.”
1 cent CPMs
Load pages, click
10 cent CPMs
Fake scroll, mouse
movement, click
1 dollar CPMs
Replay human-like mouse
movements, clone cookies
17. “The equation of ad fraud is simple:
buy traffic for $1 CPMs, sell ads for
$10 CPMs; pocket $9 of pure profit.”
18. March 2017 / Page 17marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
linkedin.com/in/augustinefou
How Ad Fraud Harms
Good Publishers
19. March 2017 / Page 18marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
linkedin.com/in/augustinefou
What I heard from Publishers
“Ad fraud doesn’t affect us”
“I wasn’t really aware of bots and fraud”
“Our SSP has an anti-fraud vendor”
“we checked, we have very low bots”
20. March 2017 / Page 19marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
linkedin.com/in/augustinefou
Top-line ad revenue stolen
1. Bot visits good
publisher site to
collect “cookie”
2. Bot then visits fake sites to
cause ad impressions to load
there; those sites make the
ad revenue
www.nejm.org healthsiteproductionalways.com
21. March 2017 / Page 20marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
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Bottom-line profit margin squeezed
www.nejm.org healthsiteproductionalways.com
$100 CPMs $0.10 CPMsvs
“Media agencies will buy more of the low-cost
stuff to lower their average costs.”
22. March 2017 / Page 21marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
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http://www.olay.co
m/skin-care-
products/OlayPro-
X?utm_source=msn
&utm_medium=cpc
&utm_campaign=Ol
ay_Search_Desktop
Reputations at-risk, bad guys cover tracks
Click thru URL
passes fake source
“utm_source=msn”
buy eye cream online
(expensive CPC keyword)
1. Fake site that
carries search ads
Olay.com ad in
#1 position
2. search ad
served, fake click
Destination page
fake source declared
3. Click through to
destination page
23. March 2017 / Page 22marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
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Premium audiences stolen by cookie matching
specialized audience:
oncologists
jco.ascopubs.org
specialized audience can
be targeted elsewhere
“cookie matching”
(by placing javascript on your site)
24. March 2017 / Page 23marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
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Bad measurements wrongly accuse publishers
Publisher does not have 90% bots and never had
“you have low viewability”
“you have 90% bots”
• We want a refund
• We won’t pay
• We want make-goods
25. March 2017 / Page 24marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
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In-ad JS measurements could be entirely wrong
Publisher Webpage
publisher.com
Foreign Ad iFrames
adserver.com
Cross-domain (XSS) security
restrictions mean iframe cannot:
• read content in parent frame
• detect actions in parent frame
• see where it is on the page
(above- or below- fold)
• detect characteristics of the
parent page
1x1 pixel
js ad tags
ride along
inside iframe
incorrectly reported as
100% viewable
26. March 2017 / Page 25marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
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Unfair fight because bad guys cheat
“Bad guys have higher (fake) viewability”
AD
Bad guys cheat by
stacking all ads
above the fold to
fake 100% viewability
Good guys have to array
ads on the page – e.g.
lower average viewability.
27. March 2017 / Page 26marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
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Cybersecurity risks and audience info stolen
Source: https://www.exchangewire.com/blog/2016/05/19/%E2%80%8Bon-site-javascript-trackers-open-gaping-security-holes/
28. March 2017 / Page 27marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
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How Ad Fraud Harms
Advertisers
29. March 2017 / Page 28marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
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Messes up your analytics
click on links
load webpages tune bounce rate
tune pages/visit
“bad guys’ bots are advanced enough to fake most metrics”
30. March 2017 / Page 29marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
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Messes up your KPIs
Programmatic display
(18-45% clicks from advanced bots)
Premium publishers
(0% clicks from bots)
0.13% CTR
(18% of clicks by bots)
1.32% CTR
(23% of clicks by bots)
5.93% CTR
(45% of clicks by bots)
Campaign KPI: CTRs
31. March 2017 / Page 30marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
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Want 100% viewability? 0% NHT (bots)?
Bad guys cheat and stack
ALL ads above the fold to
make 100% viewability.
“100% viewability?
Sure, no problem.”
AD
• IAS filtered traffic,
• DV filtered traffic
• Pixalate filtered traffic,
• MOAT filtered traffic,
• Forensiq filtered traffic
“0% NHT?
Sure, no problem.”
33. March 2017 / Page 32marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
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Fraud bots are NOT on any list
user-agents.org
bad guys’ bots
2% and “on the wane”
Source: GroupM, Feb 2017
bot list-matching
4%
Source: IAB Australia, Mar 2017
400
bot names in list
“not on any list”
disguised as popular
browsers – Internet
Explorer; constantly
adapting to avoid
detection
10,000
bots observed
in the wild
34. March 2017 / Page 33marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
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Three main places for NHT detection
In-Ad
(ad iframes)
On-Site
(publishers’ sites)
• Used by advertisers
to measure ad
impressions
• Limitations – tag is in
foreign iframe, severe
limits on detection
ad tag / pixel
(in-ad measurement)
javascript embed
(on-site measurement)
In-Network
(ad exchange)
• Used by publishers to
measure visitors to pages
• Limitations – most
detailed and complete
analysis of visitors
• Used by exchanges to
screen bid requests
• Limitations – relies on
blacklists or probabilistic
algorithms, least info
ad
served
bot
human
fraud site
good site
35. March 2017 / Page 34marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
linkedin.com/in/augustinefou
5% bots doesn’t mean 95% humans
good publishers
ad exchanges/networks
volume bars (green)
Stacked percent
Blue (human)
Red (bots)
red v blue trendlines
38. March 2017 / Page 37marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
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Example of publishers taking action to reduce bots
Publisher 1 – stopped buying traffic
Publisher 2 – filtered data center traffic
39. March 2017 / Page 38marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
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Publishers filtering bots – on-site vs in-ad
On-Site measurement, bots
are still coming
In-Ad measurement, bots
and data centers filtered
10% red
-7%
3%
40. March 2017 / Page 39marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
linkedin.com/in/augustinefou
About the Author
March 2017
Augustine Fou, PhD.
acfou@mktsci.com
212. 203 .7239
41. March 2017 / Page 40marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
linkedin.com/in/augustinefou
Dr. Augustine Fou – Independent Ad Fraud Researcher
2013
2014
Follow me on LinkedIn (click) and on Twitter
@acfou (click)
Further reading:
http://www.slideshare.net/augustinefou/presentations
https://www.linkedin.com/today/author/augustinefou
2016
2015
42. March 2017 / Page 41marketing.scienceconsulting group, inc.
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Harvard Business Review – October 2015
Excerpt:
Hunting the Bots
Fou, a prodigy who earned a Ph.D. from MIT at
23, belongs to the generation that witnessed
the rise of digital marketers, having crafted his
trade at American Express, one of the most
successful American consumer brands, and at
Omnicom, one of the largest global advertising
agencies. Eventually stepping away from
corporate life, Fou started his own practice,
focusing on digital marketing fraud
investigation.
Fou’s experiment proved that fake traffic is
unproductive traffic. The fake visitors inflated
the traffic statistics but contributed nothing to
conversions, which stayed steady even after the
traffic plummeted (bottom chart). Fake traffic is
generated by “bad-guy bots.” A bot is computer
code that runs automated tasks.