AI-Driven CTV Fraud Surges 140% Globally, Threatening Ad Spend Efficiency

Event summary

  • DoubleVerify detected a 140% increase in CTV fraud schemes in Q1 2026 compared to Q1 2025, fueled by AI advancements.
  • The report identified 50+ distinct CTV bot attacks and variants in 2025, with fraudulent apps increasing 10x from 2024 to 2025.
  • Unprotected CTV campaigns faced nearly 9% fraud rates, costing advertisers approximately $1.8 million per billion impressions served.
  • Fraud tactics varied by region: bot fraud dominated in North America (82%), while data center fraud was prevalent in APAC (98%), EMEA (66%), and LATAM (91%).
  • Only 21% of advertisers measure CTV performance using invalid traffic (IVT) or fraud detection as a KPI.

The big picture

The surge in AI-driven CTV fraud underscores the growing challenge of maintaining ad spend efficiency in the streaming ecosystem. As fraudsters exploit inefficiencies and lack of transparency, advertisers face significant financial losses, particularly in unprotected campaigns. The regional variation in fraud tactics highlights the need for tailored verification solutions, reinforcing the strategic importance of independent fraud detection in the digital advertising landscape.

What we're watching

Fraud Evolution
How AI will continue to enable more sophisticated and regionally adapted CTV fraud schemes.
Ad Spend Shifts
Whether advertisers will increase investment in fraud detection and verification tools to protect premium CTV inventory.
Market Transparency
The pace at which the industry adopts standardized fraud detection KPIs to measure CTV campaign performance.