Ad fraud shows no signs of slowing. The latest data shows that EUR120 Billion will be lost by businesses in 2023. Even more alarming is that fraudsters are getting so good at their tactics that, in recent years, even large companies like Uber, Procter & Gamble, and Verizon were victims.
What does this mean to the rest of the advertising industry? Answer: Regardless of size or budget, every ad agency is at risk – and even more so than the big guns.
This article summarizes some of the most shocking cases of ad fraud we’ve seen in recent years and what marketers and advertisers can take away from them to prevent wasting their budgets.
Recent ad frauds have been the biggest in history
Fraudsters will do anything to steal your advertising budget. From fake Clicks to bad Bots to fake Ad Impressions, they’ll go to any extent to get their hands on it.
Take a look at the recent high-profile and damaging ad fraud incidents that have affected some of the best-known brands in the world.
Methbot: Loss of $5 million per day through fake video views
In 2016, Aleksandr Zhukov and his group of fraudulent fraudsters made between $3 and 5 million a day through fake clicks in video advertisements.
“Methbot,” often cited as the most extensive digital ad fraud scheme ever discovered, was a sophisticated Botnet scheme that involved defrauding companies by allowing countless bots to watch 300,000,000 video ads per week on over 6000 spoofed sites.
Aleksandr’s group was able to steal millions a day due to the high CPM (cost-per-mille) of video ads. They targeted high-value markets. The New York Times and The New York Post are the victims of Methbot’s fraud ring. Comcast and Nestle were also affected.
Aleksandr Zhukov, sentenced in late 2021 to 10 years of prison, must pay $3.8 million as restitution.
Uber: $100 Million wasted on advertising
The transportation giant, Uber, sued 2019 against five ad network companies in – Fetch BidMotion, Taptica YouAppi, and AdAction Interactive. They won.
Uber said that its ads weren’t converting and discovered that two-thirds of its $100 million ad budget was optional. Ad retargeting firms were responsible for this, as they abused the system to create fraudulent traffic.
When the company reduced its ad spending by $100 million, it saw no difference in the number of riders installing the app.
Uber won another case against Phunware Inc. in 2020 when it discovered that most of the Uber app installations the company claimed to deliver resulted from click-flooding.
Criteo claims to sue a competitor for allegedly operating a counterfeit click fraud scheme
Criteo, an advertising network that specializes in retargeting, displayed ads, and display ads, alleged that Steelhouse, now known as MNTM, ran a click-fraud scheme against Criteo to harm the company’s image and fraudulently claim credit for users visiting retailer’s web pages.
Criteo sued TOMS, claiming the company lost TOMS due to Steelhouse’s actions – using bots and automated methods to generate false clicks on TOMS ads. Criteo accused Steelhouse in an attempt to prove Steelhouse’s superior service.
Elon Musk says that Twitter hosts a large number of fake accounts
The Elon Musk-Twitter saga, one of the most complex and tangled deals in recent tech history, doesn’t end when Twitter takes Musk to court over his decision to back out of a deal to purchase the social media giant at $44 billion.
Musk also claims that Twitter hides the true number of bots and fake accounts. Musk has also accused Twitter of fraud, alleging that the accounts make up about 10% of active Twitter users daily. This means 65,000,000 of Twitter’s 229,000,000 daily active users do not see any ads.
These high-profile cases of ad fraud can teach marketers a lot about marketing
These cases show that ad fraud is an omnipresent practice that can have a devastating and long-lasting effect on the most recognizable brands in the world.
Marketers and advertisers cannot ignore ad fraud if they are serious about achieving their goals. These high-profile cases have taught us some important lessons.
Ad fraud is everywhere
Ad fraud affects everyone, from small businesses like Uber to large corporations. Ad fraud is not restricted by location. Fraudsters are willing to commit fraud anywhere in the world.
Manual methods are difficult to detect ad fraud
Ad fraud is difficult to detect because fraudsters employ various techniques and channels. Ad fraud is difficult to detect if an organization doesn’t have the proper suggestions or individuals dedicated to tracking it.
The teams that do exist to monitor ad fraud are usually not experts, and they cannot properly analyze the vast amount of data generated by each campaign to pinpoint it.
Ad fraud wastes money, distorts data, and stops you from achieving your goals
Ad fraud can drain your budget in a big way, and that is a burden on any business. There are other ways that it can impact your ability to deliver.
Fake clicks and bots can lead to inaccurate analytics. This means that you use flawed data to make strategic decisions when you evaluate advertising campaigns and channels based on their traffic and engagement.
Finally, your ability to achieve your goals will be compromised by a stolen budget and the use of flawed data.
Ad fraud will likely affect you, even if it’s not obvious
In many cases, brands were unaware that fraudsters were targeting them. This resulted in massive damage. Due to the general lack of awareness about ad fraud, you are likely already being affected.
Ad fraud can be combated in several ways
As these cases have shown, there are options to reduce ad fraud’s negative impact and recover losses. These include requesting reimbursement or even filing a lawsuit. Ad fraud detection software is extremely helpful in such situations to uncover fraud and collect evidence.
The best way to avoid ad fraud is to stop it immediately
Ad fraud prevention is the best way to protect against ad fraud. Implementing equally sophisticated solutions is the only way to prevent fraudsters from using sophisticated schemes or attacking your campaigns. Machine learning and artificial intelligence are used in anti-ad fraud solutions to keep fraudsters at bay. This allows you to concentrate on what matters: optimizing campaigns and hitting goals.
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