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Mon
05
Nov
John Lister's picture

Facebook Ads Falsely Labeled 'Approved By' US Senators

A report suggests that Facebook approved advertisements falsely claiming to be paid for by each of the 100 sitting US Senators. The VICE News investigation uncovered a major loophole in what was meant to be a transparency measure. Following ... revelations of Russian interference with bogus posts and ads designed to disrupt the US political system, Facebook brought in several measures to restrict who is allowed to post such ads. One such measure was a new rule stating that any political ad must carry the name of the person who has paid for it, similar to the rules on broadcasting. The rule also ... (view more)

Thu
01
Nov
John Lister's picture

Report: Apps for Kids Contain Dubious, Unsuitable Ads

Apps aimed at very young children are a "wild west" of dubious advertising according to the author of a new study. Jenny Radesky of the University of Michigan's CS Mott Children's Hospital said the advertising was often manipulative. The researchers ... looked at 135 Android apps played by children, including the 96 most downloaded from the Google Play store in the "5 And Under" category. Their headline finding was that 95 percent contained at least one form of advertising. That's arguably a little misleading as this includes 42 percent of the apps featuring a commercial character such as one ... (view more)

Fri
11
May
Dennis Faas's picture

How to: Use a Firewall to Block Full Screen Ads on Android

Infopackets Reader Steve G. writes: " Dear Dennis, Thank you so much for your article on How to Disable Full Screen Popup Ads in Android ! Lately I have been inundated with full screen ads appearing on my smartphone and I have no idea where they are ... coming from. I tried your suggestion in the article, which says to wait for the full screen ad to appear, then press the app button on my phone to see where the ad is coming from. The problem is that these full screen ads don't have a title, so unfortunately I can't tell where the ad is coming from. You also suggested using a firewall but I am not ... (view more)

Thu
10
May
John Lister's picture

YouTube Deletes Videos Promoting Cheating

YouTube has removed hundred of videos which included promotions for essay-writing services. The company says it breaches its rules but the video presenters say they weren't given enough warning. The case doesn't involve ads placed via YouTube itself ... that are shown to viewers before popular videos, or display ads shown on the site. Instead the 'ads' were part of the videos themselves. 700 Million Views For Promotions A BBC investigation found that more than 250 people who produce popular YouTube videos had broken off in the middle of a clip to promote EduBirdie, a Ukraine-based service which ... (view more)

Tue
08
May
John Lister's picture

Google Cracks Down On Election Ad Abuse

Google is to tighten up its rules on election-related advertising. It will restrict who's allowed to place such an ad and give the public more detail on who's behind elections ads. The new rules will cover election ads purchased on Google in the US. ... It doesn't yet appear the rules will affect ads that simply address political issues rather than specific candidates and campaigns. One rule is that anyone placing an election ad will need to prove they are either a US citizen or a lawful permanent resident. While this becomes law, Google says it will tighten its enforcement by requiring proof ... (view more)

Tue
31
Oct
John Lister's picture

Facebook to Reveal Details of Advertisers, Ads Used on Site

Facebook says it will be more transparent about who is running ads on its site. It's also introducing tighter controls on election-related ads. The transparency changes follow questions about the influence of political advertising, particularly when ... it was unclear who had actually bought and placed the ads. However, Facebook says it will apply to changes to ads of all kind. (Source: fb.com ) Changes Set For 2018 Campaigns The changes will mean that any paid ad on Facebook must be linked to a Page, which is the business or organization equivalent to a personal account on the site. When the ... (view more)

Fri
29
Sep
Dennis Faas's picture

How to Fix: Disable Full Screen Popup Ads in Android

Infopackets Reader Richard A. writes: " Dear Dennis, I am so glad I found your website! I have a major problem with my Samsung S6 Edge (with Android Marshmallow). Recently I started receiving full screen pop up advertisements on my phone - these ads ... are appearing even when my phone is idle! At first they appeared every few days but now these full screen advertisements are popping up every few hours. I have NO idea where they are coming from. I searched google for 'block popup ads android' and came across an article suggesting it is possible to disable notifications from apps by adjusting the ... (view more)

Tue
26
Sep
John Lister's picture

Google Video Ads to Get Way More Personal

The content of video ads you see on YouTube could be personalized based on your online history, thanks to new advertiser tools. The video clips could automatically adjust based on sites you've visited, apps you've downloaded and even the places ... you've been. It's all possible thanks to Google offering a series of new tools for advertisers. One is known as "Custom Affinity Audiences," which means ads aren't simply placed next to (or before) relevant videos. Instead they are specifically targeted at users who are likely to find the content relevant. While the tool has already been ... (view more)

Tue
29
Aug
John Lister's picture

Fake News Sites Banned from Facebook Ads

Facebook is to ban ads from sites that habitually share bogus 'news' stories. The ban will apply even if the ads themselves don't point to the false stories. It's no secret that Facebook is one of the biggest sources of traffic for news sites, both ... legitimate outlets and those which deliberately run tantalizing but misleading, or outright false stories. The latter sites thrive on people sharing the bogus stories on social media sites, thus bringing more visitor and bumping up ad revenue. However, some sites also buy Facebook advertising as a way to attract visitors who will then share the ... (view more)

Wed
02
Aug
John Lister's picture

Chrome Browser to Get Ad-Blocker

Google is testing a built-in ad blocker for the Chrome browser. It's prompted a mixed response with some fears of a conflict of interest. The company had previously talked about adding an ad blocker as a built-in feature in Chrome, rather than the ... optional extensions that are already available from third-parties. Now the feature is being tested in the Dev and Canary version of Chrome. These are special versions where user get early access to features but with the knowledge that they may have performance flaws at this stage. It would be extremely unusual for Google not to later go ahead ... (view more)

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