The DoubleClick Ad Exchange is going to make payment IDs available to buyers across the world in an effort to adopt the process across its system.
Google’s DoubleClick is in the process of applying for registration with the Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG) to attain Verified by TAG status. The two-part initiative is aimed at preventing payments being made to fraudsters.
TAG Registry
TAG CEO Mike Zaneis explained: “The TAG Registry and upcoming Payment ID system will act like a ‘two-factor authentication’ for the digital ad supply chain.”
The TAG Registry allows buyers to be sure that they are dealing with trusted parties at each step of an ad campaign, and the Payment ID system adds security to the payment side, providing a two-step process that will foil criminals.
Fraudulent inventory
Google went deeper into the aims of the new system in a post on DoubleClick’s blogs.
It explained that at the moment, a programmatic buyer who discovers they have bought fraudulent inventory has no way of identifying the supply source responsible for the fraud.
The new Payment ID system will solve this problem by asking all supply sources of advertising inventory, which includes ad exchanges, ad networks and supply side platforms, to use unique and persistent anonymous identifiers.
These will then link every impression to the payee through accounting system data, so when a buyer discovers invalid activity in their supply chain, the culprit can be identified and blacklisted.
Legitimate publishers
Google’s post read: “We’ve always invested heavily to keep DoubleClick Ad Exchange free of invalid activity and ensure that money spent on our platform only goes to support legitimate publishers, app developers, and content creators.”
The company went on to announce its intention to work closely with TAG and others in the industry to set up an accepted and agreed industry-wide Payment ID programme. It also confirmed that when the TAG Anti-Fraud Working Group finalises a broader industry standard, it will make the necessary changes to ensure compliance.
