Fake Google Ads that pretend to be your brand

Transcript

1. Fake Google Ads that pretend to be your brand @yurynino October 2023
2. Proprietary + Confidential Why do we care about Fake Ads? Google has a difficult identifying and stopping them unless they are reported. It diverts dollars from high-quality publishers to scammy operations. It diverts dollars from high-quality publishers to scammy operations. It harms the user experience.
3. Agenda Invalid Traffic 01. Fake Google Ads 02. Impact on Brands 03. How to Report? 04. Questions/Answers 05.
4. A clarification about Invalid Traffic
5. Invalid Traffic Traffic that typically does not represent genuine user interest or intent. Fake Ads Fraudsters buy Ads for posing as businesses to scam consumers online. Though fake Google ads are unlawful and prohibited by the platform Ad Traffic Quality
6. Proprietary + Confidential It erodes advertiser confidence in the system. It diverts dollars from high-quality publishers to scammy operations. It harms the user experience. Fraud undermines the stability of our ecosystem on several levels
7. Proprietary + Confidential Policy Technology Applications rejected to join our ad networks. (2022) Working worldwide to defend our ad systems. Automated filters launched across our ad systems. People Established and proven Ongoing investment, innovation, and creativity 4.5M 150 200+
8. Proprietary + Confidential Clear guidance on what is and is not acceptable on our ad systems. Keeps bad actors out. The Backbone A global team of experts dedicated to fighting invalid traffic. We rely on multiple disciplines and areas of focus. Warrior Scientists Scalable, automated defenses (“infrastructure”) to consistently exclude traffic from our ad systems. Google-grade infrastructure Key strengths Across our pillars Policy Technology People
9. Proprietary + Confidential “Google has been at the forefront of the fight against digital ad fraud.” --Mike Zaneis, CEO, TAG Industry collaboration Our work with the ecosystem is critical We believe that we need to work together to tackle tough issues.
10. Fake Google Ads
11. Red Points Publication 2023 Fake Ads are used by scammers to direct consumers to different websites. While this doesn't necessarily mean the scammer is impersonating a brand's entire identity, they are still infringing on the brand and defrauding consumers.
12. Proprietary + Confidential A broad of attacks spectrum Spoof websites Hidden ads Auto-refresh Ad tag hijacking Ad injection Hijacked device Cookie-stuffing Brand impersonation Clickjacking Counterfeiting Adware Fake Ads Cryptocurrency phishing Crawler masquerading as legitimate user
13. Ad Hiding Feugiat nisl pretium fusce id velit ut tortor pretium amet dolar. Value Prop 2 Feugiat nisl pretium fusce id velit ut tortor pretium amet dolar. Value Prop 3 Feugiat nisl pretium fusce id velit ut tortor pretium amet dolar. Introducing solution: high-level value proposition summary Value Prop 4 Feugiat nisl pretium fusce id velit ut tortor pretium amet dolar.
14. Proprietary + Confidential Ad Hiding Ads inserted into pages without the publisher’s knowledge and often found from free wifi, browser plugins, and ‘software bundles.’ This type of attack steals revenue from publishers.
15. Proprietary + Confidential Click Fraud Accidental clicks are inadvertent clicking or tapping on an ad by a legitimate user. Competitors, bots and click farms clicking on your ads, cause damage to your business by spending money on fraudulent activity.
16. Proprietary + Confidential Brand Impersonation To fool consumers, scammers steal product photos and other intellectual property owned by the brand to appear as them in the advertisement. When consumers search for the brand online, a fake Google ad could come up and easily scam shoppers.
17. Proprietary + Confidential Cryptocurrency Phishing Scams Scammers use domain spoofing with similar URLs and pose as these brands to fool consumers. Our confidential financial and logging information are stolen. We have to pay in crypto to recover it.
18. Proprietary + Confidential Spoof Websites Attackers take brand impersonation one step further by impersonating a brand’s entire website. Scammers steal the real brand to replicate it for their spoof website. Once consumers are redirected to a spoof website through a fake Google ad.
19. Proprietary + Confidential Counterfeiting Fake Google ads are used by scammers to direct consumers to websites where they sell counterfeit products. Counterfeits are made with cheaper materials and are of lower quality, which can reflect poorly on the real brand whose product was stolen.
20. Impact on Our Brands
21. Impact of Google Ads on Our Brands Lost revenue Sales made by consumers on the counterfeit sites. Higher competition Every brand wants to appear at the top of a Google search Customer complaints When a consumer is fooled, they complain to the real brand. Damage brand reputation Consumers need to trust the brands they buy from
22. How to Report
23. Educate consumers Brands should let their customers know how to identify their brand, and notify them if any fake ads of their brand are found. How to Stop & Report Report fake ads on Google Brands should report it to Google immediately. To report a fake ad on Google, use this ad reporting form. Use a revenue recovery service Brands can work with a revenue recovery service that uses software to identify and take down fake ads around the clock.
24. https://support.google.com/ads/troubleshooter/4578507
25. https://services.google.com/inquiry/aw_tmcomplaint
26. https://services.google.com/inquiry/aw_tmcomplaint Report a trademark violation or complaint https://services.google.com/inquiry/aw_tmcomplaint Google Ads Trademark Consult Form https://support.google.com/legal/contact/external_consult_wf?product= adwords Trademark Verification Form https://support.google.com/adspolicy/contact/Trademark
27. https://services.google.com/inquiry/aw_tmcomplaint
28. SLAs If your client submitted a Legacy Trademark Appeal, they can expect a response in approximately 5 business days. Please note that appeals may take longer to review depending on the various details being reviewed.
29. Questions/ Answers
30. Detecting and eliminating Chamois, a fraud botnet on Android Protecting marketers from falsely represented inventory Working together to filter automated data-center traffic Expanded safeguards for advertisers Improving our brand safety controls Fighting Fraud: Protecting advertisers from buying hidden ads with DoubleClick Bid Manager References
31. Thank you yurynino@