Battle Against Ad Fraud: How to win in programmatic advertising? – Part 2

The rise of programmatic advertising, with its automated buying and selling of ad space in real-time, offers unparalleled reach and efficiency. However, it also presents a significant challenge: how can advertisers navigate this complex ecosystem to safeguard their brands from appearing alongside misleading or false information? The second part of this feature explores the strategies and technologies ad tech vendors and advertisers can employ to better manage programmatic advertising, safeguarding both their brand reputation and the integrity of their messaging in the digital age.

While the rise of programmatic advertising brings unparalleled efficiency and reach, it also demands a vigilant approach to safeguard brand integrity. 

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Battle Against Ad Fraud: Why brand safety matters in Programmatic Ads era - Part 1

Experts suggest that advertisers must navigate this complex ecosystem with a multifaceted strategy that includes strict publisher verification, collaboration with third-party verification services, and the implementation of sophisticated contextual analysis tools. By enhancing algorithmic transparency, fostering open communication, and adhering to industry-wide standards, the digital advertising industry can significantly reduce the risk of monetizing misinformation. Proactive measures such as ad fraud prevention software, domain blacklisting, and maintaining viewability standards further ensure that ads appear in credible environments. Through these concerted efforts, advertisers can protect their brands and contribute to a more trustworthy digital advertising landscape.

Advertisers need to better manage programmatic advertising to ensure their ads do not appear on websites that distribute misleading or false information.

According to Bhavesh Talreja, Founder and CEO, Globale Media, in order to improve transparency and accountability and minimize the monetization of misinformation, the digital advertising industry can take several steps.

Firstly, he suggests, implementing stricter verification processes for publishers can ensure that only credible and reliable sources participate in ad networks.

“Advertisers should collaborate with third-party verification services that audit and certify the authenticity of content. Additionally, enhancing algorithmic transparency by clearly documenting and disclosing how ad placements are determined can build trust. Creating comprehensive and regularly updated blocklists of known misinformation sites and employing more sophisticated contextual analysis tools to understand content better can further prevent ads from appearing on such sites. Increasing human oversight through regular audits and manual reviews can catch issues that automated systems might miss. Industry-wide standards and best practices for ad placement should be developed and enforced, ensuring that all stakeholders are aligned in their efforts to combat misinformation,” Talreja adds.

He further says, “Finally, fostering open communication between advertisers, publishers, and ad tech vendors, coupled with continuous education on emerging misinformation tactics, can help the industry stay ahead of challenges. By adopting these measures, the digital advertising industry can enhance transparency and accountability, significantly reducing the risk of monetizing misinformation.”

To better manage programmatic advertising and ensure their ads do not appear on websites that distribute misleading or false information, advertisers can rely on network safeguards, as these are currently the primary means of detection, says Adam Smart, Director of Product (Gaming) at AppsFlyer.

“These measures can more easily identify false content in adult categories. However, there is a strong need for more efficient tools to manage ad placements. Advertisers should also consider categorical exclusions, avoiding placements on politically charged or extremist websites to minimize the risk of appearing alongside misleading or false information While it may still seem easy to categorize a website as “political content”, the distinction between “misleading” or even “extremist” content is likely to be more difficult,” says Smart.

According to Ranjit Thind, Director of Media and Tech, Asymmetrique, the digital advertising industry can improve transparency and accountability to minimize the monetization of misinformation by employing several key measures. “Employing third-party verification services can independently audit and verify where ads are being placed. Clear reporting is also essential, providing advertisers with detailed reports on ad placements and performance, including visibility into all intermediaries involved. Adopting and enforcing industry-wide standards, such as the IAB’s Transparency and Consent Framework, can further enhance transparency and accountability. Additionally, offering more granular controls for advertisers to choose where their ads are served, including content categories and specific site exclusions,” he adds.

Sajid Shaikh, Group Account Manager - Media, SoCheers, reckons that in current day and age, ad-tech vendors can take several proactive steps to prevent ads from being served on disreputable sites, such as:

• Ad Fraud Prevention Software: There are multiple softwares available in the market to increase the efficiency of monitoring ad placements. These softwares are adept in detecting and preventing fraudulent activities, thus ensuring that ads are not served on disreputable sites.
• Domain Blacklisting: Regularly updating the list of known fraudulent domains and blocking them from receiving ad impressions can help prevent ads from being shown on fake or low-quality websites.
• Viewability Standards: Ensuring that ads are served in viewable and legitimate environments can effectively prevent ad fraud. As for the effectiveness of all these measures mentioned, they are quite effective in combating ad frauds. Ad fraud prevention softwares are also capable of identifying fraud at impressions, clicks & view levels and can even report the same.

To enhance transparency and prevent manipulation in the digital advertising industry – and to avoid its misuse for financial gain through the spread of fake news – several actions can be undertaken, points out Abhishek Tiwari, Global Business Head at NetSetGo Media.

“First, ad tech vendors and platforms should improve their content verification processes and develop more robust algorithms to identify and exclude sites hosting misleading ads. Additionally, establishing norms and standards through professional accreditation bodies can help ensure media content is accurate and credible. Advertisers should also have greater control over where their ads are placed, with options to preview and ban sites that could harm their brand,” says Tiwari.

(Tomorrow, Part 3 will explore the significance of the gap between advertisers' perceptions and the reality of ad placements on misinformation sites. Is programmatic advertising technology a major culprit, with brands using these platforms to buy ads on questionable sites?)