TAG awards first ‘Certified Against Fraud’ seal to 16 digital advertising companies

A cross-industry group formed to fight fraud in digital advertising announced the certification of the first set of companies for meeting anti-fraud standards Wednesday.

The  Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG) awarded the “Certified Against Fraud” seal to Amobee, comScore, DoubleVerify, Dstillery, Google, WPP’s GroupM, Horizon Media, Integral Ad Science, Interpublic Group, Moat, Omnicom Media Group, OpenX Technologies Inc., ProData Media, Rocket Fuel Inc., Sovrn and White Ops, Inc.

“The initial recipients of the TAG ‘Certified Against Fraud’ Seal represent the connective tissue of digital advertising, including the world’s largest publishers, ad agencies, and ad tech providers, and they have helped establish the TAG seal as the gold standard in the digital advertising ecosystem,” said Mike Zaneis, CEO of TAG, in a statement.

Each company had to meet standards specific to the role it plays — direct buyer, direct seller, fraud vendor, or intermediary — in the digital advertising supply chain. TAG’s goal is to eliminate fraudulent traffic, combat malware, fight internet piracy and promote transparency in digital advertising.

The group was formed by the American Association of Advertising Agencies (4As), the Association of National Advertisers (ANA), and the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB). It launched the “Certified Against Fraud” program in May, at which time more than 30 companies had signed on to participate.

Zaneis said TAG is accepting applications for 2017, and “we look forward to welcoming a heavy pipeline of future participants over coming months.”