AI is working. Your data is what’s broken.
Everyone is rushing to apply AI, but foundational identity gaps, fraud and bad inputs are only being amplified, not solved, by models.
Topic: Fraud
The Data Doppelgänger problem
AI agents, shared signals and fragmented identities are distorting marketing intelligence. Most brands do not know who is really acting.
Google tightens rules on fraud-linked phone numbers in ads
Advertisers should review and verify all phone numbers in their ads, as Google will soon disallow any linked to fraud or past policy violations.
Google to enforce phone number verification for Message Assets in ads
Google Ads will require phone number verification for message assets starting August 1st, or those assets will be disapproved and won't serve.
Google Business Profile robocall scams are increasing
New report finds scammers are ramping up efforts to trick business owners into paying for help with free Google Business Profile listings.
Google financial services verification policies now rolled out in the UK
Google is taking a stand in the UK to educate the general public and stop financial ad fraud.
Google expands financial services verification policy to Australia, Singapore, Taiwan
Results from last year's test in the UK market showed a promising decline in scam-related Google Ads
Microsoft took down 3 billion ads in 2021
Fake celebrity-endorsed ads, account takeover attempts increased, according to Microsoft's ad safety year in review.
Google Maps blocked 100 million abusive business profile edits in 2021
Less than 1% of the content viewed on Google Maps was fraudulent or abusive, Google said.
Financial services advertisers in the UK must meet Google verification requirements by August 2021
ensure you meet the verification requirements to distinguish yourself from spam financial service advertisers and to prevent suspension.
Why machine learning means proactive loyalty fraud prevention
Loyalty programs are big business for companies and a key target for fraudsters. Don't just wait for a hacker's attack before acting.
SEO industry ‘a minefield of dodgy practitioners’: Australian official seeks action
Small business advocate is calling for new regulation.
Small business scammer shut down by Google lawsuit
Defendant firm had falsely represented that it was acting on behalf of Google.
Google to record some calls from ads for quality assurance
The program is aimed at bringing spam and fraud detection to call ads.
Google steps up efforts to fight scams and fraud directed at SMBs
The company is filing new lawsuits, has developed tools and a stronger education program.
UK local SEO firm Movette shut down by regulators for deceptive sales practices
Firm falsely implied it was affiliated with Google and signed SMBs up to recurring annual contracts worth from $250 to more than $300.
DecorMyEyes Merchant Vitaly Borker Sentenced To Four Years In Federal Prison
The New York Times reports Vitaly Borker, the merchant who boasted of being abusive to customers and claimed, inaccurately, that such behavior had a side benefit of producing good rankings in Google, has been sentenced. The sentencing was to four years in federal prison and ordered to pay approximately $100,000 in restitution and fines. Vitaly […]
Solving “Local” Challenges: Combating Bulk Calls
If you a) believe in the power of search—as a technology, as a consumer experience and as a business model, and b) believe in the economic promise of the “local” opportunity, then you need to commit to a simple axiom: the ultimate destiny of a local search is a phone call.
Google Sued For “Fraudulent Mobile Subscription Services”
Eric Goldman has posted about yet another lawsuit against Google. This time the plaintiffs were allegedly wronged in a case involving mobile subscription services. Google is not the alleged wrongdoer here, but is being sued because it allowed the wrongdoer to advertise (AdWords) and the plaintiffs got to the bad actor via those ads.
Google Sued For Undesired AdSense Inclusion
Google is being sued by a man represented by a law firm that has successfully sued Google several times in the past. The firm is Kabateck Brown Kellner and the man is David Almeida, a local businessman from Massachusetts who claims that Google’s sign up process for AdWords wrongly conceals that advertiser text ads will […]
Traffic Power’s CEO Jailed Over Alleged Foreclosure Scams
SEO Company CEO Arrested, Jailed: Accused of Foreclosure Scam from Search Engine Watch reports Traffic Power’s CEO, Matt Marlon, was jailed for allegedly committing foreclosure fraud. The news comes from Las Vegas’s News 3 station, which reports Matt Marlon was arrested for allegedly conning homeowners faced with foreclosure to give the company their homes. Traffic […]