Google Expands Verification for Financial Advertisers

Google announced Wednesday it's tightening its verification process for advertisers promoting financial services in an effort to fight financial fraud and scams. The policy will roll out in Australia, Singapore and Taiwan this month. For most countries where advertisers promote financial services, Google requires information like hidden fees to a service or a minimum and maximum repayment timeframe for a personal loan to be disclosed to consumers. Now, the platform is asking advertisers to show proof of authorization through their financial service regulator and complete a Google advertiser verification program before a deadline of Aug. 30. Advertisers that do not complete the new verification process by the deadline will no longer be allowed to promote financial services, according to the search giant. "We work tirelessly to make sure the ads we serve are safe and trustworthy," Google director, ads privacy and safety Alejandro Borgia said in a statement. "That’s why we’re closely coordinating with regulators in these three markets to make sure this program is effective at scale." The financial fraud tussle Financial fraud is something consumers can fall victim to since it's often hard to tell the difference between fraud and search ads. The Singapore police reported in January that, since December 2021, financial scams accounted for the loss of nearly SG$495,000 (nearly $360,000 USD) due to consumers dialing a bank hotline found in a Google Search ad. Google also found that it blocked or removed more than 58.9 million ads that violated its financial services policies in 2021 alone. While financial institutions aren't intentionally promoting anything fraudulent, consumer trust still wanes. Despite placing the least amount of ads in general, consumers still trust political, pharmaceutical and financial service ads the least in the U.S., according to insights from Nielsen. But there are already signs the framework can work. It's the same that Google enforced in the U.K. back in September 2021, which led to a decline in ads that promoted financial fraud, Google said, though it declined to provide specific figures. According to a report from British publisher The Times, U.K. Bank TSB said scam ads on Google had been "all but eliminated since the company introduced rules in August that forced all financial advertisers to prove they were authorized by the Financial Conduct Authority.” Additionally, Google has already established an identity verification policy for advertisers to disclose information on the business or brand they're promoting, which was introduced in 2020. The feature is live in more than 180 countries, according to Google, with plans to expand the financial service policy to more countries in the coming months. "We remain committed to this effort and will continue to collaborate with industry and government organizations to lead on necessary changes that help fight evolving tactics from bad actors," Borgia said. Yahoo and Amobee DSPs Remove Google Open Bidding as a Source of Supply

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Google Expands Verification Process for Financial Service Advertisers

The policy will roll out in Australia, Singapore and Taiwan, according to the company

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