DoubleVerify has issued guidance on combating rising schemes that exploit ads.txt, the standard for declaring authorized sellers in digital media. The DV Fraud Lab has reported over 100 incidents of ads.txt deception since its introduction in 2017, highlighting a troubling trend of fraudsters mimicking the system. An alarming example involves "Synthetic Echo," a network of over 200 AI-generated sites employing deceptive domain names to mislead advertisers. The guidance emphasizes the need for increased scrutiny from all stakeholders in digital advertising to combat this growing threat effectively.
"Bad actors are exploiting ads.txt and advertisers often have no idea it's happening," said Gilit Saporta, head of the DV fraud lab. "It's a growing risk that demands more scrutiny from buyers, sellers, and vendors."
The scale of this deception is evident in Synthetic Echo, a network of over 200 AI-generated, ad-supported websites recently uncovered by the DV fraud lab.
Synthetic Echo churns out low-quality AI content and uses deceptive domain names - like espn24.co.uk, nbcsportz.com, and cbsnewz.com - to mislead programmatic platforms and buyers into mistaking them for legitimate publishers.
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