The IAB Tech Lab introduced the Ads.txt file back in 2017 to
safeguard ad inventory and prevent programmatic ad fraud. Since then, it has
played a pivotal role in fostering transparency in the digital advertising
industry. Despite its effectiveness, many publishers remain apprehensive or
unaware of the advantages of this initiative. This article provides a concise
summary of Ads.txt, practical tips for implementing it on WordPress and Google
AdSense, and how it benefits publishers and advertisers alike.
What is Ads.txt?
Ads.txt, which stands for Authorized Digital Sellers, is a
text file created to tackle ad fraud, specifically domain theft and hijacking.
It improves the transparency of a publisher's ad inventory by disclosing the
origin of purchased and resold impressions.
Through ads.txt, publishers can publicly list the authorized
sellers of their ad inventory and prevent fraudulent activities associated with
unsanctioned inventory sales. Moreover, ad buyers can verify the sellers and
steer clear of unauthorized traffic sales thanks to ads.txt.
Ads.txt serves
the following purposes:
- Identifying authorized entities to sell publishers' ad inventory.
- Allowing buyers, ad exchanges, and others to crawl publishers' domains.
- Matching seller account IDs in bid requests.
- Shielding advertisers from phony ad inventory.
Here's how
ads.txt operates:
Publishers
insert the ads.txt file on their website, verifying domain ownership and
listing partner accounts (like ad exchanges and SSPs) that can sell their ad
inventory. As a result, advertisers can easily access a comprehensive list of
all authorized publishers and their ad inventory online.
When a bid
request from the publisher reaches the advertiser, they only have to match the
publisher's account ID with the ads.txt file.
If the account
ID matches, the advertiser can be confident that the publisher is legitimate.
Conversely, if the buyer finds that the publisher's ID is unverified, they can
choose not to bid on the publisher's ad inventory.
Image source- IAB
