Learn what ad fraud is, how it works, and how to prevent it with the help of ad verification vendors, who can verify and validate your ad delivery, performance, and quality.

How about turning off ad partner networks where all the volume and 90% of the fraud is? Buying on low CPM and volume combination brief is vanity, ignorance, and irresponsible.

What are the best practices for choosing and working with ad verification vendors?

Ad fraud is a serious threat to online advertising, costing advertisers billions of dollars every year. It involves malicious actors who use various methods to generate fake impressions, clicks, or conversions on digital ads, and then collect the revenue from the ad networks or platforms. Ad fraud not only wastes ad budgets, but also distorts campaign performance, damages brand reputation, and exposes users to security risks. In this article, we will explain what ad fraud is, how it works, and how to prevent it with the help of ad verification vendors.

1 Types of ad fraud

There are many types of ad fraud, but they can be broadly categorized into two groups: impression fraud and performance fraud. Impression fraud refers to inflating the number of times an ad is displayed, regardless of whether it is seen by a real human or not. This can be done by using bots, malware, or hidden pixels to generate fake impressions. Performance fraud refers to faking the actions that an ad is supposed to trigger, such as clicks, leads, or sales. This can be done by using click farms, hijacked devices, or spoofed domains to generate fake conversions.

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Alex Beaurepaire

Marketing at Scope3
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Here are the most prevalent types of fraud in programmatic and RTB campaigns: 1. "Made for Advertising" websites, which are websites designed to host advertising and hijack advertisers' budgets. In this guide, learn what it is, how much they cost you and why you should avoid them. 2. General Invalid Traffic impressions (botnets, fake domains, unsafe browsers, known data centers) 3.Sophisticated Invalid Traffic impressions (adware, domain spoofing, bad autofresh, bad external traffic and high ad density) 4. Inefficient impressions (auto refresh, high external traffic and high ad frequency)

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2 How to detect ad fraud

Detecting ad fraud can be difficult, as fraudsters are always changing their methods and covering their tracks. Nevertheless, there are some common signs that can help advertisers identify suspicious activity, such as abnormally high or low click-through rates (CTRs), conversion rates (CVRs), or cost per action (CPA). Additionally, irregular traffic patterns, such as spikes, drops, or plateaus, mismatched geolocation, device, or browser data, low viewability, engagement, or retention rates, and invalid or duplicate leads, sales, or refunds can all be indicators of ad fraud.

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3 How to prevent ad fraud

Preventing ad fraud requires a proactive and comprehensive approach, involving multiple layers of protection and monitoring. Advertisers should choose reputable and transparent ad networks, platforms, and publishers, and set clear and realistic campaign goals, metrics, and budgets. Additionally, fraud prevention tools, such as ad blockers, firewalls, or anti-malware software, should be implemented on devices and servers. Finally, ad verification vendors should be used to verify and validate ad delivery, performance, and quality.

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Marc Dhalluin

Would Your BRAND ask you to LEAD it NO MATTER What? THINK. Carefully.
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How about turning off ad partner networks where all the volume and 90% of the fraud is? Buying on low CPM and volume combination brief is vanity, ignorance, and irresponsible.

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Alex Beaurepaire

Marketing at Scope3
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One of the most efficient way of protecting programmatic ad campaigns on the open web is the use of pre-bid segments. Prebid refers to the process of conducting an auction among demand partners before the ad server is called. Using anti-fraud segments from third-party vendors available on major DSPs like Google DV360 helps you fight fraud before spending money on fraudulent open web placements. For example, at Adloox, we detect an average of 15% of Invalid Traffic and Made for Advertising websites on campaigns with no pre-bid enabled. We are achieving less than 1% with our segment.

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4 What are ad verification vendors

Ad verification vendors are third-party companies that provide services and solutions to help advertisers ensure that their ads are delivered, displayed, and measured correctly and accurately. By using tags, pixels, or scripts, they can collect and analyze data from the ad servers, publishers, and users, and detect and report any anomalies, errors, or fraud. Utilizing ad verification vendors can optimize ad spend and ROI by eliminating wasted impressions, clicks, or conversions, protect your brand image and reputation by avoiding inappropriate or unsafe content, sites, or audiences, and help you comply with industry standards and regulations, such as the IAB guidelines, GDPR, or CCPA.

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Alex Beaurepaire

Marketing at Scope3
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Ad Verification vendors help you comply with industry standards and regulations, such as the IAB guidelines, GDPR, or CCPA. However, it's not enough: MRC accreditation is key for fully compliant ad verification. The Media Rating Council is the US media industry's self-regulatory body. Its auditing for viewability and fraud protection is indispensable for optimal and dutiful ad measurement and security.

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5 How to choose and work with ad verification vendors

Choosing and working with ad verification vendors can be a complex and costly process, as there are many factors to consider. These include the scope and quality of their services and solutions, the cost and value of their fees and contracts, the reliability and accuracy of their data and reports, the compatibility and integration of their technology and systems, and the support and communication of their team and representatives. To make the most of your ad verification vendors, you should do your research and compare different options, negotiate and review your terms and conditions, test and monitor their performance and results, communicate and collaborate with them, and provide and request feedback and suggestions for improvement.

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Marc Dhalluin

Would Your BRAND ask you to LEAD it NO MATTER What? THINK. Carefully.
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The single most important factors are: 1. Is all the data they use independent of the content platform reporting? 2. How much of the fraud are they able to detect? (Legacy vendors notoriously detect a fraction of fraudulent activity)

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Alex Beaurepaire

Marketing at Scope3
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1. Choose an ad verification vendor properly accredited by regulatory bodies such as the MRC and compliant with IAB guidelines. 2. Select a measurement and verification solution compatible with the widest range of DSPs, SSPs, and ad platforms, with official integrations and agreements. 3. Opt for a vendor with proven experience and a track record. 4. Select a vendor that understands your challenges, offering specific tailor-made solutions for brands, agencies, or publishers. 5. Choose a vendor with excellent account management and customer support, going beyond providing features to bring clarity and education for your ad ops teams.

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What are the best practices for choosing and working with ad verification vendors?

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1 Types of ad fraud

2 How to detect ad fraud

3 How to prevent ad fraud

4 What are ad verification vendors

5 How to choose and work with ad verification vendors

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