Some UK and US government sites are ‘sharing data with ad brokers’
18 government websites in UK & US share visitor data with ad brokers. Some US sites potentially violate CISA rules. UK allows ads on .gov.uk sites with restrictions.
At least 18 government websites in the U.K. and the U.S. send visitor information to multiple online advertising brokers, according to a report. This includes an ad-tech business in China previously embroiled in privacy disputes.
Google previously blacklisted Yeahmobi’s SDK as “malicious” following an investigation into ad fraud and attribution abuse, Silent Push stated.
Selling ad space involves finding third parties willing to showcase themselves to the host’s audience. They can sell the space directly to the advertisers or go through an intermediary. Ad.txt files are aimed at combating certain types of ad fraud.
However, in the U.S. through the Registry Team, the Cybersecurity Infrastructure and Security Agency (CISA) explicitly forbids the use of .gov websites for any commercial activities that benefit private individuals or entities, including online advertising.
