June 2025

In this month's newsletter:

• European Fraud Savings Report 2025
• Deep Dive into Europe's latest Fraud Savings Report 
• Cannes
• State of the Fight - IT'S BACK!
• In the News
• Where in the World is TAG
• One More Thing

 

STUDY FINDS INDUSTRY EUROPEAN ANTI-FRAUD PROGRAMS SAVED ADVERTISERS €3.45 BILLION; BROADER PARTICIPATION COULD SAVE €1 BILLION MORE

A new study released at Cannes found that the European ad industry’s anti-fraud programs prevented €3.45 billion in potential Invalid Traffic (IVT) losses in 2023, reducing those losses by 69% compared to the amount that would have been lost without those programs in place, according to a new study. 

The TAG 2025 European Ad Fraud Savings Report also found that advertisers could unlock an additional €1.075 billion in annual savings if they extended the industry’s current anti-fraud standards across the remaining 24% of spend that is currently unprotected by those standards.

“European advertisers are currently leaving more than €1 billion on the table by not requiring all of their downstream ad partners to adopt TAG-level standards to prevent fraud,” said Jules Kendrick, Chief Growth Officer of TAG. “Those losses are an unnecessary self-inflicted wound for our industry because not all companies have taken the steps needed to protect their partners across the digital advertising supply chain.”

Key findings from the report included:

• European Ad Industry Would Have Lost €5 billion to IVT in 2023 Without Current Anti-Fraud Standards and programs

Without the ad industry anti-fraud programs currently in place, the IVT rate for all display and video advertising in Europe would have been approximately 10.36% in 2023, translating to potential losses of approximately €5 billion.

• Broad Adoption of Anti-Fraud Standards Reduced IVT Losses by 69% in 2023

The European ad industry’s broad implementation of anti-fraud standards significantly reduced IVT losses in 2023. As a result, the industry’s losses due to IVT across all channels were 69% lower than potential unfiltered losses at just €1.558 billion.

• In Protected Channels, IVT Losses Were Held to Just €368 Million -- 1% of Ad Spend in Those Channels

76% of European ad spend went through channels with TAG protections in 2023, and the rate of IVT loss was held to just €368 million, a nominal 1% of the total ad spend through those channels. 

• €1.075 Billion Could Be Saved Through Adoption of Anti-Fraud Standards Across 24% of Unprotected Ad Spend 

European advertisers are still leaving money on the table, as 24% of Europe’s ad spend is still flowing through unfiltered channels. If companies in those channels adopted rigorous anti-fraud standards, European advertisers could save nearly €1.075 billion per year, which is currently lost to IVT.  

 

“The European ad industry has made tremendous strides in reducing the scourge of ad fraud from endemic to manageable levels and saving billions of euros for advertisers,” said Scott Cunningham, founder of Cunningham.Tech Consulting and co-author of the study. “Despite that progress, significant work remains to be done. With continued industry collaboration driving expanded adoption of TAG’s anti-fraud standards, the European industry can ensure that sub-1% fraud rates are the standard across all channels used by advertisers.” 

For the full 2025 European Ad Fraud Savings Report, including the methodology for the findings, click below. 

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Dive Deeper Into the 2025 European Ad Fraud Savings Report with Co-Author Scott Cunningham and TAG’s Jules Kendrick

 

Want to learn more about the findings of the 2025 European Ad Fraud Savings Report and the lessons that could help your company take its share of an extra €1 billion in savings? Join co-author Scott Cunningham of Cunningham.tech and Jules Kendrick, Chief Growth Officer of TAG, for a spirited discussion of the findings that could put a smile on your CFO’s face.

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FEELING CANNES-TASTIC

Team TAG was on the ground at the 72nd annual Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity this month, meeting with members, engaging in dialogue with industry leaders, and discussing critical issues like ad fraud, transparency, brand safety, and malware.

TAG COO Rachel Nyswander speaks with an interviewer for Chief, a leading global network of women executives, on the Chief Rooftop at Cannes.

It’s a yacht of work to network with thousands of industry leaders at Cannes, but Rachel, Jules, Scott Cunningham, and Statista Strategies’ Oliver von Wersch were all a-boat it.

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State of the Fight returns for its 10th year!

Join us this October in New York City for a one-of-a-kind TAG Community event packed with:

• Bold conversations
• Spicy takes
• Thought-provoking agenda tackling digital advertising’s biggest challenges. 

This exclusive gathering is a must-attend for anyone shaping the future of adtech.

🔥 Seats are limited—reserve yours now and be part of the action at the hottest event this October!

 

 

From “Ad Industry Fraud Programmes Save European Advertisers Billions” in WARC:

Key stats 

• The 2025 European Ad Fraud Savings Report from TAG (Trustworthy Accountability Group) says that the industry would have lost €5bn to IVT in 2023 without current anti-fraud standards and programmes.
• Thanks to the broad implementation of anti-fraud standards, the industry’s losses due to IVT across all channels were 69% lower than potential unfiltered losses at just €1.558bn. 
• With three-quarters (76%) of European ad spend going through channels with TAG protections in 2023, the rate of IVT loss was held to just €368m – a nominal 1% of the total ad spend through those channels.
• The report also calculates that advertisers could unlock an additional €1.075bn in annual savings if they extended the industry’s current anti-fraud standards across the remaining 24% of spend that is currently unprotected.

Why fraud programmes matter

At a time when marketers are concerned about tight budgets and under pressure to ensure money is spent effectively, reducing digital ad fraud seems an obvious first step. Yet by not demanding that appropriate standards are met they are potentially wasting huge sums. 

 

From “European Anti-Fraud Programmes Prevented €3.45 Billion Losses in 2023” in PPC Land:

 

Europe has seen broad adoption of TAG's Certified Against Fraud standards, as well as country-specific programmes that incorporate anti-fraud elements into broader guidelines, such as the Digital Ad Trust Certification in France and BVDW's Digital Trust Initiative in Germany. While these country-specific initiatives have played an important role, TAG's fraud-specific and annually-updated worldwide program has proven its ability to quickly address new and emerging issues across the global supply chain.

 

The study focused specifically on video and display advertising channels to allow direct comparison with the annual TAG European Fraud Benchmark Report, based on high-quality revenue data publicly available in those channels. The analysis excluded other advertising formats such as search, audio, and emerging formats.

For advertisers seeking to minimize fraud exposure, the report suggests adopting TAG-level standards across these transactions would reduce losses to €115 million from the current €1.19 billion in unprotected channels, unlocking the additional €1.075 billion in annual savings. …

The report's findings have particular significance for the marketing community given recent developments in the anti-fraud landscape. Global fraud prevention measures saved U.S. advertisers $10.8 billion in 2023, while TAG awarded a record 321 certifications in 2024, demonstrating growing industry commitment to fraud prevention standards.

 

The economic impact extends beyond immediate cost savings. Fraudulent traffic distorts performance data, leading to misguided optimization decisions that can hurt return on investment. When advertisers optimize campaigns based on invalid traffic signals, they may inadvertently increase exposure to fraudulent inventory while reducing reach to legitimate audiences.

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Team TAG are always looking to connect with the TAG Community wherever they are! 

In the coming months, you can find us at:

If you're going to be there and want to connect with us over a beverage, then reach out to us below!

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Keep Up-To-Date With The Working Group Brief

TAG's working groups are a crucial source point of conversation and collaboration for digital advertising. Make sure you stay up to date with the latest progress and developments with the Workin Group Brief. 

Read the latest Working Group Brief 👉 tagtoday.net/working-groups

Leverage TAG Research into Your Everyday!

From APAC Fraud Snapshot reports, to UK Brand Safety Consumer reports, to Best Practices whitepapers, TAG's research is here to support our member's day-to-day compliance as well as strategic planning. 

Visit our Data and Insight page 👉 tagtoday.net/insights

Let's Make Some Noise Together 🤝

We love it when TAG members highlight our work together to fight digital ad crime and improve transparency. Please send any TAG-related press releases, blogs, or other announcements to Andrew Weinstein at andrewwstn@gmail.com for review before release.

 

Topics: Blog