Sayollo and Protected Media Partner to Protect Immersive Mobile Game Advertising From Sophisticated Fraud
Digital Remedy Partners with Protected Media; Takes CTV Ad Fraud Prevention to the Next Level
“By partnering with the MRC-accredited Protected Media, we are able to help Digital Remedy clients eliminate fraudulent traffic. ProtectedTV is a game changer for ad fraud detection in the OTT/CTV space. It brings clarity and trust to digital advertisers. The value then becomes our ability to deliver campaign performance across measurable metrics, most notably overall campaign ROI.” David Zapletal | Chief Innovation & Media Officer, Digital Remedy “We’re here to solve the OTT fraud problem before it gets out of hand. We appreciate the fact that ad professionals want to do their jobs, and aren’t interested in pursuing fraudsters down cyber rabbit holes. Our mission is to keep OTT a clean advertising environment by building trust and baking verification into the system. By harnessing ProtectedTV, Digital Remedy doesn’t just measure fraud—it fights fraud efficiently.” Asaf Greiner | Protected Media CEO Cybersecurity Methodologies Increase Value for Flip Users Flip, a leading OTT/CTV advertising platform by Digital Remedy, provides full funnel attribution tracking and real-time campaign optimization across all major OTT platforms. Digital Remedy has created a scalable, efficient OTT buying marketplace for advertisers with the Flip solution—and now it’s protecting clients from fraudulent traffic with the next level of ad fraud identification and prevention technology. Digital Remedy prioritizes quality over quantity as a long-term strategy for the creation of real, sustainable yield for its network of clients, including advertisers and agencies. In order to keep the funnel clean and achieve value over fake clicks, Digital Remedy partnered with Protected Media and implemented its ProtectedTV cybersecurity solution for all Flip users. Digital Remedy is upping the ante against fraudsters to ensure clients access only to premium, brand-safe inventory. Digital Remedy clients can rest assured that their ads are served to validated, authenticated audiences, so that engagement actually occurs. ProtectedTV is built from the ground up, on an innovative cybersecurity approach that enables both demand and supply players to work in environments they trust, with the peace of mind of authenticated and verified user engagement. The cutting-edge ProtectedTV solution is based on an advanced technological stack, cryptography, and network & computing core analysis. ProtectedTV’s independent supply-side verification & authentication technology utilizes internal data to effectively (1) block malicious attacks directed at the platform; and (2) prevent misleading sale of “CTV inventory” on the open market that leads to loss of revenue and reputation dilution. By utilizing Protected Media anti-fraud technology, the Flip platform offers a layer of protection to ad campaigns—detecting and eliminating fraudsters—to make sure clients are only paying for real, genuine audiences and conversions, and that audiences are engaging only with validated, authenticated traffic. This innovative partnership is the latest example of the ongoing commitment of Digital Remedy to its clients and the company’s bid to create more clarity, transparency, and trust in the OTT/CTV space. About Digital Remedy Digital Remedy is a leader in data powered technology and services for marketers with a simple belief: create solutions that solve problems. Digital Remedy delivers advertisers, publishers, and agencies the innovation, technology, and customer service they need to make the most of their digital advertising endeavors. From audience extension and targeting strategies, to campaign optimization and inventory monetization, Digital Remedy provides cross-channel efficiencies to solve any marketing challenge. About Protected Media Protected Media is a global leader in ad fraud prevention and detection. ProtectedTV, Protected Media’s patent pending CTV solution, offers a unique three-way authentication and verification technology that guarantees the validity and quality of any given transaction across the CTV supply chain. Founded in 2014 by veterans of Israel’s cybersecurity industry, Protected Media uses cyber methodologies and the most advanced technological stack to protect its over 100 global customers from sophisticated ad fraud and current and emerging threats. HQ in Tel Aviv and an office in New York. Download Protected Media & Digital Remedy’s CTV Ad Fraud White Paper
Protected Media Launches ProtectedTV: A Technology Suite for End-to-end OTT Ad Fraud Protection
Tel-Aviv, August 14. Yesterday, Protected Media was accredited for OTT by the Media Rating Council; today, the global provider of advanced cybersecurity ad fraud solutions announces the launch of ProtectedTV, a new technology suite designed and built to curb ad fraud across the connected TV (OTT/CTV) digital advertising ecosystem. ProtectedTV is built from the ground up on an innovative cybersecurity approach that enables both demand and supply players to work in environments they trust, with the peace of mind of authenticated and verified user engagement. The cutting-edge solution is based on an advanced technological stack, cryptography, and network & computing core analysis. Unique capabilities include: User & device authentication. Impression-level, tamper-proof cryptography that guarantees a trusted transaction. Each ad impression is uniquely verified and digitally signed using a patented three-way authentication, making it tamper-proof and preventing spoofing/impersonation at its root. Anyone along the media buying chain automatically verifies the source via PM’s trusted servers. Data verification. Detection of the most sophisticated attacks, including novel CTV attack vectors, that creates transparency & confidence. The advertising platform’s control of the data allows for continuous supervision and control over how it is perceived and measured by the market. Proactive “bad” source take-down. Off-platform value safeguarding that leads to reputation and revenue protection. ProtectedTV’s independent supply-side verification & authentication technology is integrated into the platform and utilizes internal data to effectively (1) block malicious attacks directed at the platform; and (2) prevent misleading sale of “CTV inventory” on the open market that leads to loss of revenue and reputation dilution. This technology is based on device interrogation that creates a deep understanding of specific platforms & behaviour patterns. Cybersecurity methods are used to actively collect multiple signals from every transaction, providing deep insights relative to the validity and quality of any given transaction. Asaf Greiner, CEO at Protected Media, said: “We’re here to solve the OTT fraud problem before it gets out of hand. We appreciate the fact that ad professionals want to do their jobs, and aren’t interested in pursuing fraudsters down cyber rabbit holes. Our mission is to keep OTT a clean advertising environment by building trust and baking verification into the system. Protected Media doesn’t just measure fraud – it solves fraud.” Protected Media hase recently earned MRC’s OTT/CTV accreditation for video Served Impressions within the OTT environment, inclusive of SIVT filtration. John Nardone, CEO at Flashtalking, a global ad server working with Protected Media, said: “We are thrilled to see PM add OTT/CTV accreditations to their other MRC credentials. As OTT/CTV is becoming a bigger and bigger part of our business, our joint clients can get even more value from our tag integration partnership with PM.” Protected Media currently serves multiple OTT/CTV solution providers, scanning over 100 billion ad opportunities a month. David Zapletal, Chief Innovation & Media Officer at Digital Remedy, a U.S.-based, enterprise technology media solution working with Protected Media, said: “ProtectedTV is a game changer for ad fraud detection in the OTT/CTV space. It brings clarity and trust to digital advertisers. By partnering with the MRC-accredited Protected Media, we are able to help Digital Remedy clients eliminate fraudulent traffic. The value then becomes our ability to deliver campaign performance across measurable metrics, most notably overall campaign ROI.” OTT Fraud is Growing in Scope and Sophistication OTT/CTV adoption is on the rise – by consumers, advertisers and fraudsters alike. The new marketplace is growing rapidly and projected to reach 50% of all US households by 2024. As is typical for a young market, the OTT/CTV space is still only lightly regulated. The blackbox logic of many of its components make it uniquely murky and obscure. It is the perfect breeding ground for fraudulent activities, which are in fact quickly growing in scope and sophistication. CTV ad fraud impacts trust and value for all stakeholders. The damage is both direct, when ad platforms and channels lose money and reputation, and indirect – when advertisers’ perception of the platforms’ value drops as a result of poor performance, while platforms lack the ability to defend their advertisers and inventory. As distrust permeates the environment, value quickly deteriorates and revenues decrease. While there are many ad fraud solutions in the market, most have been designed and honed for the web market. These solutions typically employ Machine Learning techniques for big data analysis in order to measure the volume of fraudulent traffic and root out adverse sources. While effective to some extent in the web scenario, these technologies don’t translate well to the OTT/CTV space. Not enough data to go on, and not enough experience to build coherent models, create a gap for ad fraud in Connected TVs that existing solutions just can’t bridge. About Protected Media Protected Media is a global innovator in ad fraud prevention and detection. ProtectedTV, Protected Media’s patent pending CTV solution, offers a unique three-way authentication and verification technology that guarantees the validity and quality of any given transaction across the CTV supply chain. Founded in 2014 by veterans of Israel’s cybersecurity industry, Protected Media uses cyber methodologies and the most advanced technological stack to protect its over 100 global customers from sophisticated ad fraud and current and emerging threats. HQ in Tel Aviv and an office in New York.
Protected Media Accredited for OTT Video Served Impressions by Media Rating Council, Inclusive of SIVT
Also granted continued accreditation for display and video Served Impressions including SIVT for Desktop, Mobile Web and Mobile In-App Tel Aviv, August 13, 2020. Protected Media, global provider of advanced cybersecurity ad fraud solutions, today announced that it has earned the Media Rating Council (MRC) accreditation for video Served Impressions in OTT (over-the-top TV), inclusive of both General Invalid Traffic (GIVT) and Sophisticated Invalid Traffic (SIVT), in non-SDK measurements. Protected Media also maintains its existing scope of MRC accreditation for display and video Served Impressions within the Desktop, Mobile Web and Mobile In-App environments, including for Sophisticated Invalid Traffic. With the rise in adoption of connected TV, OTT/CTV ad fraud has been growing rapidly in scope and sophistication across the advertising supply chain. CTV fraudulent activities adversely impact value and trust for both advertisers and publishers. The Media Rating Council’s accreditation speaks to the validity and robustness of Protected Media’s new paradigm of invalid traffic detection for OTT. Protected Media’s OTT solution is based on cybersecurity methodologies to provide sophisticated detection and protection for all stakeholders in the digital advertising supply chain. “Protected Media’s MRC accreditation for SIVT in OTT environments is a noteworthy accomplishment,” said George W. Ivie, Executive Director and CEO of the MRC. “As more and more advertisers’ investments move to OTT and CTV platforms, it’s essential they are able to do so with confidence, and with this accreditation, Protected Media has demonstrated itself as a service that can be counted upon to provide this.” Protected Media’s CEO Asaf Greiner said, “we are committed to enable advertisers on both the demand and the supply side to work in environments they trust, with the peace of mind of authenticated and verified user engagement. MRC’s recent accreditation for Protected Media is an important milestone for IVT detection and prevention in the fastly growing OTT ecosystem.” About Protected Media Protected Media is a global leader in ad fraud prevention and detection, accredited by MRC for SIVT detection and filtration on OTT as well as Desktop, Mobile Web and Mobile Apps. ProtectedTV, Protected Media’s patent pending CTV solution, offers a unique three-way authentication and verification technology that guarantees the validity and quality of any given transaction across the CTV supply chain. Founded in 2014 by veterans of Israel’s cybersecurity industry, Protected Media’s product suite uses cyber methodologies and the most advanced technological stack to protect its customers from sophisticated ad fraud and current and emerging threats. With offices in Tel Aviv and New York, the company serves over 100 global customers across the supply chain, including SSPs, DSPs, networks exchanges, publishers and advertisers. Protected Media provides the most advanced ad fraud protection in the market, giving its customers the peace of mind they need to do their job. For more information visit www.protected.media or contact info@protected.media. About The Media Rating Council The Media Rating Council is a non-profit industry association established in 1963 comprised of leading television, radio, print and digital media companies, as well as advertisers, advertising agencies and trade associations, whose goal is to ensure measurement services that are valid, reliable and effective. Measurement services desiring MRC accreditation are required to disclose to their customers all methodological aspects of their service; comply with the MRC Minimum Standards for Media Rating Research as well as other applicable industry measurement guidelines; and submit to MRC-designed audits to authenticate and illuminate their procedures. In addition, the MRC membership actively pursues research issues they consider priorities in an effort to improve the quality of research in the marketplace. Currently, approximately 110 research products are audited by the MRC. Additional information about MRC can be found at www.mediaratingcouncil.org.
Inside Google and others’ struggle to stop an advertising-fraud scheme that’s skimming $130 million from the industry
Lucia MosesBusiness InsiderJul 27, 2020 Protected Media has recently launched an industry-wide takedown operation of Hydra, an advanced, proactive, large-scale ad fraud operation. We’ve joined forces with Google, TAG, other security companies, and major advertisers to provide industry players with dedicated data enabling them to identify Hydra’s fraud and cut it off. The Slay Hydra Operation is a testament to the prowess of Protected Media’s cybersecurity approach for ad fraud detection, even in the face of the most technologically and conceptually advanced fraud schemes. The reactions to our coordinated cross-industry response have been overwhelmingly positive. As stated by a Google spokesperson: “We commend Protected Media for sharing information on the Hydra ad fraud scheme and collaborating with the broader industry, which is key to minimizing impact.” Read about the Slay Hydra Operation on @Business Insider
Hackers Using 20-Year-Old Tech To Steal $$$ Via Your Phone Bill
John KoetsierConsumer TechJohn Koetsier is a journalist, analyst, author, and speaker. Would you notice if there was an extra $5 or $10 on your monthly mobile phone bill? If you’re like me, you might not notice for months or even years. But that’s exactly how hackers are scamming consumers today, using 20-year-old technology most techies have even forgotten ever existed. And you’d never know you’d been scammed, because it doesn’t require a single click, tap, or authentication. All you have to do is view an ad on your phone. Hackers can add small amounts to your phone bill that you may not notice, making a small amount every month from a large number of people. PHOTO BY TRAVIS ESSINGER ON UNSPLASH Before apps and app stores, before Facebook on mobile or YouTube on your phone, there was WAP: wireless application protocol. Developed in 1999 to web-enable dumbphones of the day, WAP was a low-bandwidth way to get news, stock quotes, and other tidbits of information. (This was the “baby web” that Steve Jobs mocked when he introduced the iPhone, which had a full relatively modern web browser, in 2007.) Like terrestrial radio and dead-tree newspapers, however, old tech rarely dies. Rather, it slowly fades out of sight and out of awareness, only popping up in our semi-stunned awareness when, for example, stimulus checks need to be delivered for tens of millions of people and aging mainframes running 50-year-old operating systems can’t handle the load. Unbeknownst to most, WAP has, like COBOL, never completely died. And to the credit (or debit) of mobile programmers of the early 2000s, WAP included protocols for billing. Let’s pick debit, because one of the billing mechanisms was to charge items directly to your phone bill. Which of course is perfect for hackers, because you won’t see that for a month. Or, perhaps for most of us, ever. GETTY IMAGES At least until we find out that our regular $200 bill is now magically $700 and we have a heart attack. The threat, dubbed wapSiphone, was recently discovered by ad security company Confiant and ad fraud fighting company Protected Media. And it exists for four reasons: image ads can carry a payload of Javascript code which can execute silently on your phone; WAP provides a billing mechanism via your unique MSISDN, or Mobile Station International Subscriber Directory Number, that does not require registration, username, or password; some mobile carriers are happy to hand out your MSISDN to anyone who asks via HTTP, or hypertext transport protocol (the language linking on the web); and, of course, hackers want your cold hard cash. Also, I suppose, because old code never dies. It just gets hacked by the bad guys of tomorrow. “The WAP billing workflow requires the provider to harvest the user’s MSISDN, which is typically available through a lookup service via the mobile carrier,” security researcher Eliya Stein says. “This is then reconciled on the backend and then the charges appear directly on the consumer’s phone bill. Historically, this flow required the consumer to load the provider’s site over WAP, but wapSiphone is able to exploit the fact that multiple carriers will make the MSISDN available over HTTP, either through headers or a lookup service. This enables the malvertiser to dispatch these lookup requests to the mobile carriers from within display ads in order to collect the victims’ MSISDN.” Stein says that the ad networks in use by the hackers behind wapSiphone include RTBTradeIn and DecenterAds. From there, the ads get syndicated across the complicated mobile advertising ecosystem. Currently, this scam is only targeting carriers such as Global Telecom Holding S.A.E. (formerly Orascom Telecom), which is based in Amsterdam, GB Mobile in Mexico, and an unknown mobile carrier in Iran. That small target footprint may not, however, last long. I asked Stein, a senior security researcher at Confiant, for more information. Koetsier: How much would scammers make? Stein: We don’t have hard data on this, but most will probably try to go for a maximum of several dollars per victim so as to try and fly under the radar. Koetsier: have you seen any growth of this beyond the regions you mention? Stein: It’s less common in the US and Europe, probably due to increased privacy enforcement like GDPR. We have heard of similar attacks in the EU, but this specific attacker seems to limit their activity to Iran, UAE, and Mexico at the moment. Koetsier: Would it work in North America and Europe as well? Stein: Whether it would work in Europe or not is carrier specific. There are probably some vulnerable carriers, but less than in other parts of the world. Koetsier: does it impact iOS and Android equally? Stein: It really depends on what devices these carriers are compatible with, but certainly it would work on both if they are both supported. Koetsier: Can it happen via in-app ads and/or mobile web ads? Stein: These campaigns ARE mostly targeting in-app, but [they are] equally possible on mobile web. Koetsier: Thank you for your time! Read the full piece on Forbes
Fraudsters Get Ready To Spoil Streaming Industry’s Party
Streaming services are the new kings of online entertainment, but fraudsters are stealing from the advertising jewels in their crown. Asaf Greiner from Protected Media discusses why the streaming industry is under threat. When a party’s in full swing and everybody’s having fun, who wants to point out that the punch has been spiked and some of the guests are stealing your possessions? This Is Where the Streaming Industry Is at Right Now. With Netflix leading the charge, and the likes of Amazon, Hulu and Roku not far behind, the industry has reached that giddy stage where the business model has finally taken off. As Netflix proclaimed in its recent earnings report, “Just like the evolution from broadcast TV to cable, these once-in-a-generation changes are very large and open up big, new opportunities for many players.” As young consumers, in particular, turn away from traditional TV channels and viewing habits change, streaming services are the new kings of online entertainment. It’s no surprise then that advertisers are keen to reach the audience demographic that streaming attracts, and many channels need their ad spend in order to keep expanding. The problem is that there are unwelcome guests at the streaming industry’s party: online fraudsters. These criminals have already turned web advertising into a minefield of click bots and pseudo sites, and now they’re siphoning off ad budget from streaming services too. Why Is Streaming Vulnerable to the Fraudsters? For a start, something that might seem obvious, but that many people overlook, is that streaming video – often referred to as OTT (Over-The-Top) services – is just another form of online traffic delivered via an internet connection. As such, it can be attacked, hijacked and imitated in exactly the same way as video ads on websites often are. Not only that, but streaming is extra-attractive to fraudsters for two major reasons: number one, ads on streaming platforms are sold at a premium rate compared to web ads, so there’s more budget up for grabs; and number two, advertisers have very limited methods of measuring or verifying where or how their ads have been delivered. It’s another case of technology solving a problem, then creating a new one. For example, rather than having to load ads onto the viewer’s streaming device before being displayed, platforms are increasingly ‘stitching’ ads into the core stream itself, particularly for live feeds, which creates a smoother viewing experience. But for advertisers, there’s no way of discerning when or if their ads have been shown – they just have to trust that the platform’s server has done its job properly. That’s right, despite paying three-four times more for an ad on a streaming platform, more often than not, there’s no way for an advertiser to independently check if their ad has been seen. This presents a lucrative opportunity for fraudsters. On the web, advertisers can access information about click-through and impression rates, and can spot anomalous behaviour that might indicate fake traffic, whereas streaming platforms give them no such insight – a situation that is ripe for exploitation. And this isn’t just a hypothetical problem – we’re already seeing high rates of web and mobile traffic impersonating OTT traffic. We’re even seeing traffic from platforms that don’t run ads! And don’t think that a subscription model, where all content is paid for, offers watertight protection – fraudsters have no problem impersonating a paid traffic channel either. Fraud can eat away at an eco-system from the inside. For the streaming platforms and channels, ad revenue that should rightfully be theirs is being gobbled up by fake traffic, particularly when the ads are being served programmatically – that is, without any direct participation from the publisher. And for advertisers, their budget is being thrown away without any demonstrable return. While advertisers on the web have become resigned to the fact that a proportion of their spend will be wasted on fake impressions, advertisers on streaming platforms – particularly those from a TV background – are likely to be a lot less tolerant given the sums of money involved. So Why Isn’t Something Being Done About This? Remember, the streaming industry’s party is in full swing right now, and its focus is on growing audience share and traffic on their platforms – the last thing they want is to start questioning where some of that traffic is coming from, or whether or not it’s real. And yet, this is exactly the time when they need to address this issue, before the streaming eco-system becomes as corrupted as the web. By integrating traffic verification technology into platforms now, they can nip fraud in the bud before burgeoning legacy infrastructure makes this too complex to achieve. Being able to offer a fraud-free environment to advertisers will protect platforms’ future revenue, while doing nothing will just encourage the fraudsters. The streaming industry should enjoy its party, but it needs to throw unwelcome guests out on the street where they belong. Read the full piece on MarTechAdvisor
Protected Media Launches OTT Supply Side Ad Verification
In a market first, TV manufacturers, OTT TV channels and TV advertising platforms can now provide demand partners with fraud-free digital CTV ad marketplaces 24th September 2019, Tel Aviv – Protected Media, the leading provider of ad fraud detection solutions, announced the launch of its groundbreaking SDK for CTV and OTT. With the new SDK OTT traffic can be verified at the source for the first time, providing media buyers with clean marketplaces in which to purchase fraud-free, viewable inventory. The SDK is unique as it verifies each impression which is then digitally signed. The data attaches to the impression as an identifier which can be authenticated by anyone along the distribution flow at a trusted Protected Media server. The SDK also provides a constant live data source to facilitate the artificial intelligence powering Protected Media’s Prebid Solution. Protected Media’s OTT SDK is available for content owners, OTT operating system providers and technical OTT platforms. The use of the OTT SDK by supply side partners removes that burden of validating traffic from the advertisers, and places it in the hands of the supply side who can use verification as a tool to boost CPMs and protect their own reputation. With OTT ad revenues predicted to double by 2020, trends indicate that OTT is ripe for exploitation and supply side stakeholders have no protection from opportunistic cyber criminals who regularly exploit vulnerabilities in the ad tech stack. “OTT and CTV audiences are growing rapidly,” explains Joe Hirsch, CEO at SpringServe, the leader in video ad serving and a Protected Media customer. “While there is an abundance of high quality traffic sources, it’s important to remember that there are unscrupulous groups who attempt to make money with suspicious activities. For this reason, we work with Protected Media. We believe that a robust IVT detection solution is a critical component for protecting buyers from bad actors.” “Our advertising monetization platform serves millions of OTT ads every day,” says Thomas Engdahl, President CEO of Vidillion, Inc. “As a technology provider with access to data for which demand-side verification vendors cannot reach, we understand that advertisers need a verified, fraud-free marketplace to increase trust and transparency in the OTT programmatic space. That’s why we’ve chosen to integrate Protected Media’s multilayered ad protection technology into the Vidillion Advertising monetization platform.” In a unique position as a supply side verification vendor, Protected Media empowers customers to define data parameters for analysis. “The OTT space has a unique set of challenges when it comes to verifying that traffic is indeed fraud free,” adds Asaf Greiner, CEO at Protected Media. “Besides being a nascent vertical which is fragmented and extremely complex, there are additional components which make it a more sophisticated space to navigate. For example, the use of Server Side Ad Insertion for ad stitching means that it’s impossible to implement third party verification code onto creatives.” “For this reason, our solution is built to be baked into the OTT ad tech stack – we work with groups who can place our verification technology into parts of the funnel that no one else can access. Our expertise in cyber security, together with access to the technology underpinning the OTT platforms, means that we provide the market’s first evidence based, granular solution for verifying OTT traffic.”
Blocking: Ad-fraud Prevention or Cure?
Traffic verification has become an exercise in fear-mongering. We’ve reached a stage where everyone from publishers to verification vendors and agencies are bragging about their blocking rates, as if to say that blocking is the only or best way to stop ad fraud. Ad fraud is the industry’s worst kept secret with $35 billion lost to fraudulent activities committed via online, mobile and in-app advertising in 2018 according to Juniper Research – and losses expected to jump to $42 billion in 2019. Everyone knows the risks of ad fraud, but as CPMs plummet in the name of blocking and the relationship between advertisers and publishers are at an all time low, we have to ask ourselves: is the cost of blocking worth less than the fraud? Blocking might be one way to handle fraudulent traffic but it seems to have much further reaching negative ramifications. There has to be a better way to combat ad fraud without harming publishers, and inadvertently, the open internet itself. It’s time to move away from unilateral actions like blocking, and start communicating with publishers. A media buyer has a number of options available to help them to eliminate fraud in their traffic. and the first is shutting down traffic sources entirely. It’s a high risk move and will influence access to audiences in the future. This is a tactic which should only be employed when you’re sure that a traffic stream is entirely or mostly fraud, or if you’re looking at a high volume of cheap traffic where it might not pay to carve out the legitimate traffic. In the worst case scenario where probabilistic detection flags up false positives, eliminating a traffic source means missing valuable opportunities. Blocking is de rigueur – it’s trendy because blocking (by IP, device ID, browser etc) purportedly eliminates IVT while still serving ads to legitimate audiences, with a lower risk than shutting down a traffic source. Considering the lack of consequences for verification vendors who over-block, it’s fair to assume that verification partners err on the side of caution and take the approach of “if in doubt, block it out”. This is problematic because you risk losing legitimate users in a blocking exercise with a blocking happy vendor. You’ll also inevitably throw out non malicious IVT (scraper or indexing bots) and your publishers won’t understand why you’re refusing to pay for impressions which they have measured as clean. If media buyers don’t help publishers to understand why their traffic is being blocked then they cannot clean it up and eventually publisher CPMs will decline. This is a terrible consequence of over-blocking for media buyers who then lose out on audiences across the board. Shutting down traffic sources and blocking IVT are all important components of a robust anti-fraud strategy but they cannot provide long term protection from fraud. Instead of harming reputable publishers by taking harsh unilateral steps, there are many opportunities for media buyers to investigate, analyze and research traffic. Conversations about traffic quality are critical and in fairness it’s the supply side who are closest to the traffic and are well equipped to have an open conversation about the validity of their audiences. Media buyers have look at all of the variables in every scenario and choose the right tool from their anti-fraud arsenal. It’s important to keep in mind that if a marketer’s goal is to meet KPIs and they’re not buying traffic directly, it’s critical to use the right analysis tools so as not to take broad, unilateral steps which will harm them and exclude valuable audiences in the future. Read the full piece on MarTech Advisor
Hidden Danger To D2C Marketing: Fake ‘Lookalikes’
We’re currently in the middle of a retail revolution, with the rise of online direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands showing it’s possible to build a multi-billion dollar company without the aid of stores. D2C has also created a new marketing model that, by cutting out the ad agency, avoids some of the more dubious practices of the online advertising industry. However, the problem of fraud hasn’t gone away for the D2C brands, with many companies facing increasingly sophisticated attacks that threaten the very roots that D2C is built upon. D2C brands have changed retail from being a best-guess numbers game to a precisely targeted process where marketing is personalized at an individual level and social media is increasingly where outreach to customers takes place. D2C seems to offer a way forward that not only enables brands to communicate directly with both existing customers and their target audience, but also hugely reduces their potential exposure to ad fraud schemes and the criminal networks that run them. However, much like the agency model, where fake traffic and false impressions are reported as true because the client is pushing the agency to secure eyeballs at whatever cost, D2C brands can fall victim to scams that appear to give them exactly what they want. The results of these attacks are potentially disastrous because they also strike at the very heart of the D2C model: data quality. It’s exactly because D2C brands have specific KPIs that define their ideal customer that makes them vulnerable to fraud. A key part of their methodology is spotting “lookalikes” to existing customers on social media and serving creative to them based on shared metrics in terms of interests, career, age etc. The problem with this is that fraudsters also know what these KPIs are, and are able to create fake lookalikes that display the exact attributes the brands are searching for, but don’t actually exist. These “ghost profiles” are designed to generate fake traffic, despite happening within the supposedly safer environment of a walled garden social media platform. More than just losing potential sales or revenue, such scams chip away at the foundations of D2C’s raison d’être by skewing the data that they base their campaigns upon. They might think they’ve had numerous positive interactions with consumers, and therefore their campaign is successful, when in fact many of these responses are false. The more that this happens, the more it invalidates the entire D2C model, with their precision-based outreach ultimately built on lies. And the problem of dedicated attacks in the D2C space is growing simply because the brands often don’t realize they’re being targeted in this way. D2C is vulnerable because it’s still relying on old-school measurement tools left over from the agency model that are unable to spot attacks such as fake lookalikes. To stop D2C from becoming yet another online space polluted by fraud, brands need to become as innovative and forward-thinking in their verification methodologies as they have been in their customer relationship management. Read the full piece on MediaPost
