Brand safety and ad fraud have become a raging issue for the marketing fraternity, especially in the post-pandemic world, with a boom in unsavoury news content and an explosion in news about wars breaking out globally. Marketers are getting increasingly worried about where their ads are being placed, and whether the content aligns with the brand’s messaging.

EY’s latest M&E report highlighted that 95% respondents had taken some precautions regarding the placement of ads in unsafe environments/ platforms. A senior marketer from the BFSI category had told exchange4media recently that he has indeed been troubled by brand safety issues. And not just now, it has been going on for a while, around three months, and there apparently is no way to filter.

“Instagram and Twitter are not the only ones causing these problems. LinkedIn is not far behind. All three platforms have been causing brand safety problems. Ads are coming now left right centre around content we do not abide by,” the person added.

Another marketer from the FMCG space had also shared his concerns, mentioning how their ad for oil was placed alongside content speaking of avoiding fatty foods. “This is a blunder, for the lack of a better word. No consumer is going to read ‘avoid fatty foods’ and then click on an ad to purchase oil,” the person added.

The EY report noted that there has indeed been a rise in the non-transparency of ad placements. When an ad is placed alongside unsafe content, the brand could face reputational damage and loss of consumer trust, it said.

About 7 out of 10 brands and agencies said they or their clients had been exposed to brand safety risks at least once, with 10% of respondents reporting “regular” exposure. An example of this was seen in the recent Ukraine-Russia crisis, where ads of major American companies were seen on Russian ad inventory.

According to the report, in India, more than 70% of clients faced some level of brand safety issues. 

When global players pulled the plug

In 2023, Adalytics reported issues on different placements across various networks, including walled gardens.

For instance, in December 2023, Google announced it would provide advertisers the option to opt out of the Search Partner Network (SPN). The SPN basically allows advertisers who buy search ads to broaden their exposure on websites that employ Google's search interface and are eligible for ad monetization.

This move came at the back of allegations by Adalytics that the tech giant was quietly placing search ads on non-Google websites, posing a potential risk to brand safety. The flagged websites referenced in the research contain pornographic, sanctioned and pirated content.

This wasn’t all.

Major players like Walmart, Disney, Apple, Sony and IBM also got a harsh wake-up call. Turns out, their ads on Elon Musk-owned social media platform X (formerly Twitter) were popping up next to seriously nasty content—think white nationalism and even pro-Nazi content. This prompted the titans to swiftly pull the plug on their advertising on that platform.

Meta-owned Instagram also landed in hot water when an investigation showed their system was putting raunchy content right beside ads from big names. Match Group (that owns Tinder and Bumble) slammed the brakes on their ad campaigns in response.  

The Way Out

According to EY’s report, more brands are now opting for localised and regional handling of brand safety instead of a global approach. Additionally, brands are focusing on placement-level analysis instead of platform-level analysis, which may not be as accurate.

It further noted that advertisers must move beyond traditional brand safety checks that are limited to pure meta tags-based keyword searches at a pre-bid level. Similarly, on most platforms, traditional brand safety checks are sometimes on the overall platform level, and not at the content level.

With the rampant evolution of digital technology, only time will tell how safe brands find themselves in these troubled waters going forward.