Regardless of the model, when we go down to level of individuals operating anddeveloping systems, the profile of the individual is more or less the same.
If you had grown up programming and playing games, and ended up in trouble because theeducation system and the society at large not only failed to challenge you, but failed to appreciate your unique mind, what do you think you would be looking for as your 21st-century career opportunities?
I think that for many of these kids the opportunity of playing a 24/7/365 computer game with a US$100bn in price money can be hard to turn down. For the sake of reference, that’s US$3,700 up for grabs every single second. There is an army of kids in this world, that would be delighted to pick up such an opportunity, either on their own or as part of a group.
It doesn’t matter if it’s a one man publisher model, an international crime organisation or the Chinese Hacker Army, this opponent we are facing is far more motivated (and skilled) to take his share of our money, than we are to stop him.
Labor omnia vicit improbus
Unrelenting work conquered all.
Virgil, Georgics, I.145
The picture two portraits side by side, and the essay’s question: which has the better chances in a technological arms race?
Which one of the above do you think have the better chances for thriving in a technological arms-race? And yes, online ad fraud is a technological arms-race.
If you are unsure about which, think about the fact that not only one is far superior in skill and knowhow, but also is focused on one thing (milking the exchange) instead of struggling to keep up with the rapidly evolving details of at least 20-30 other “equally important” topics. The media industry has found itself being the casino against the MIT Blackjack Club, only this club is much bigger and harder to catch.
The one thing we can do the “bad guys” can’t, is to unite as and industry to fight against and eventually resolve this issue. At the moment our understanding of this subject matter is somewhat limited, which becomes clear from the documents put forth by IAB and ANA recently. While these are great pieces of work to initiate the conversation, they are nowhere near actually outlining the problem and the opponent we are facing.
Therefore, the first objective must be to continue the great work IAB and ANA have on their accounts started, and create a comprehensive ontology of online advertising fraud. Then as ANA and IAB rightly suggest, we absolutely must unity against the fraudsters and act based on a deep understanding of the subject matter and our opponent.
We also must be ready to invest significantly more on information security, which so far has been an after thought for the industry. It’s time to understand that adtech is critical infrastructure (due to its function as a driver for commerce) and we must learn to safeguard it as such.