PALM SPRINGS, Calif — Over the last year, the scourge of digital ad fraud has risen up to become one of the industry’s biggest bogeyman.
But what if you could cut ad fraud by up to 600%? That’s what Mike Zaneis claims he can do, for companies that follow his organization’s recommendations.
Zaneis heads up the Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG), a non-profit umbrella through which 500 companies are working on the issues which plague the industry.
TAG was established three years ago with a mission to fight criminal activity in the supply chain. It now has a membership across 26 countries.
“We were chartered by the leading trade associations, the IAB of course but also the Association of National Advertisers and 4A’s to bring the industry together to fight criminal activity,” he tells Beet.TV in this video interview. “Specifically, fraud, privacy and malware. But we also have this overarching mission to increase transparency throughout the ecosystem.”
Zaneis has previously told Beet.TV TAG’s goal is to put ad fraudsters “behind bars“.
Until then, he is helping media companies clean up their supply chain, by laying down guidelines platforms should follow.
“We come up with high standards,” he says. “We set really high bar.” Compliant companies earn a TAG Certified-Against-Fraud seal. And Zaneis says it is working.
“Our certification programs are proving to be very effective,” he adds. “It means you’re living up to the highest levels of fighting criminal activity.
“If agencies and marketers work with trusted actors that provide transparency and are certified against fraud then that TAG certified channel will eliminate 83% of all fraudulent traffic. More than 600% cleaner than the industry average. It’s a pretty good start.”
This video is part of a series covering the IAB Annual Leadership Meeting. The series is sponsored by AppNexus. Please visit this page for more coverage.
