Security report 2023

This is how many problem ads Google removed from traffic

Industry experts estimate that Google's servers deliver an average of around 30 billion advertisements every day.

(Bild: dpa/Ole Spata)

In 2023, Google blocked or removed more than 5.5 billion advertisements that violated the US online company's guidelines or were intended to serve fraudulent purposes. This is according to a Google report on ad security, which was published in Mountain View on Wednesday.

The blocked content includes advertising for dangerous products or sexual content. It also includes ads that are dubious or fraudulent, such as those promising a miracle cure or quick riches.

Google manager Duncan Lennox, who is responsible for ad security at the search engine operator as Vice President, said: "Google's goal is to identify fraudulent ads and block accounts before they reach the Google platforms or remove them as soon as they are discovered."

Megatrend AI
The most important trend in 2023 was the impact of generative artificial intelligence, as seen in chatbots such as Google Gemini. This new technology has triggered relevant and significant changes in the digital advertising industry - from performance optimization to image processing. "But there is also no question that the introduction of readily available AI video tools has exacerbated the proliferation of fraudulent ads with so-called deepfakes," said Lennox.

Deepfakes are photos, videos or audio files that are deliberately altered using artificial intelligence. You see or hear people doing or saying things that they have never actually done or said.

The Google manager emphasized that the AI also helps to identify fraudulent content and enforce Google's guidelines. AI is significantly involved in 90 percent of blocking decisions. If advertisers or publishers believe that the AI has made a mistake, Google teams will check this. In cases where errors are found, these findings are used to further improve the systems.

According to Lennox, Google not only removed 5.5 billion questionable or even fraudulent ads in 2023, but also blocked or removed 12.7 million advertiser accounts, which is almost double the number from the previous year. The company does not disclose the total number of ad placements per year on its own sites or via the Google advertising network. Industry experts estimate that Google's servers deliver an average of around 30 billion ads per day.