Russian Criminals Fake Video Clicks In Biggest Ad Fraud Ever
December 26, 2016
A group of Russian criminals are faking clicks on video ads to the tune of $3 million to $5 million per day, according to security firm White Ops. The scheme is the largest ever digital ad fraud ever uncovered. Using more than 6,000 domains and 250,267 distinct URLs, the ad fraud group tricked algorithms used to bid for ad space into choosing their fake sites over big-name brands. Then they used a vast bot farm to send massive traffic to those sites, driving up revenue from the pay-per-click system. Though the system has been uncovered, those bilked of millions may never see prosecution or have hope of getting that money back. “Historically … it’s been challenging to get cooperation with Russia to prosecute cyber-related crimes,” Eddie Schwartz, chief operating officer at White Ops, told Fortune. In a white paper, White Ops noted that the fraud scheme may be even larger than their estimate.
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