Man
Professional
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In May 2024, digital media measurement, data and analytics software platform DoubleVerify (DV) discovered FM Scam, the latest audio ad fraud scheme to date.
Attackers send fake audio traffic and increase advertisers' costs. They fake the number of listens using dedicated servers.
The fraudulent scheme also includes spoofing of a wide range of devices used to play audio content: smartphones, tablets, CTVs, audio players, smart watches and speakers, etc. This tactic allows cyber fraudsters to mix invalid traffic with real traffic, thus hiding their fraudulent activity.
Fraudsters sell invalid traffic through SSP platforms, exchanges and advertising networks. An analysis of the impact of the scheme showed that with the help of audio advertising fraud, attackers generate up to 100 million advertising requests per month. They harm not only advertisers, but also sellers of high-quality audio content, reducing their share of revenue.
According to Jack Smith, chief innovation officer at DoubleVerify, audio content and advertising are quickly becoming a lucrative target for fraudsters. They are typically targeting new sales channels like audio, which are heavily advertising-driven but currently lack comprehensive standards for measuring the effectiveness and quality of traffic.
FM Scam merges with real traffic, as the scammers imitate the behavior of typical continuous and long-term listening to advertising. This randomizes the traffic structure and brings it closer to the real one in parameters.
Once the FM Scam scheme came to the attention of DoubleVerify, they quickly linked the IP addresses used in the attack to the CTV scheme first discovered in 2019. A number of the IP addresses have also been linked to other scams, including malware distribution.
Attackers send fake audio traffic and increase advertisers' costs. They fake the number of listens using dedicated servers.
The fraudulent scheme also includes spoofing of a wide range of devices used to play audio content: smartphones, tablets, CTVs, audio players, smart watches and speakers, etc. This tactic allows cyber fraudsters to mix invalid traffic with real traffic, thus hiding their fraudulent activity.
Fraudsters sell invalid traffic through SSP platforms, exchanges and advertising networks. An analysis of the impact of the scheme showed that with the help of audio advertising fraud, attackers generate up to 100 million advertising requests per month. They harm not only advertisers, but also sellers of high-quality audio content, reducing their share of revenue.
According to Jack Smith, chief innovation officer at DoubleVerify, audio content and advertising are quickly becoming a lucrative target for fraudsters. They are typically targeting new sales channels like audio, which are heavily advertising-driven but currently lack comprehensive standards for measuring the effectiveness and quality of traffic.
FM Scam merges with real traffic, as the scammers imitate the behavior of typical continuous and long-term listening to advertising. This randomizes the traffic structure and brings it closer to the real one in parameters.
Once the FM Scam scheme came to the attention of DoubleVerify, they quickly linked the IP addresses used in the attack to the CTV scheme first discovered in 2019. A number of the IP addresses have also been linked to other scams, including malware distribution.
