"SkyWalk fraudsters have embedded secret web browsers inside various iOS gaming apps. These apps are downloadable in the App Store and appear legitimate. Their games are playable. But when a user opens one, the app also secretly launches hidden websites on the user's iOS device. As the user plays "Sushi Party" or "Bicycle Race" in the app, the hidden sites run in the background, undetected, serving ads no one sees. Impressions are reported. Advertisers get billed. Not a single ad is viewed by a human."
"DV has reported a surge in AI-powered ad fraud this year, including a spike in malicious apps. Even so, SkyWalk is a standout. It involves dozens of fraudulent apps concealing over 80 fake gaming websites that generate millions of manipulated ad impressions. It employs hidden browser technology to render its websites completely invisible to users and uses touch hijacking to generate premium ad formats. Profit sharing is coordinated among multiple fraud participants."
A coordinated fraud scheme called SkyWalk uses legitimate-looking iOS gaming apps to run concealed web browsers that load invisible websites which serve ads in the background. The apps are playable and available in the App Store while simultaneously opening hidden sites on users' devices to generate false ad impressions and clicks. The operation uses a shared framework called UniSkyWalking, employs touch hijacking for premium formats, and coordinates profit sharing among multiple participants. The scheme leverages AI-generated content to make fake sites appear authentic during audits and misrepresents app traffic as website traffic to evade measurement safeguards.
Read at App Developer Magazine
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