Between January and August 2020, fake users or bots accounted for 54.6 percent of mobile ad fraud activity worldwide. Software development kit (SDK) spoofing – or the creation of legitimate-looking installs with data of real devices without the presence of any actual installs – was the second most common type of mobile ad fraud, with 22.05 percent of fraudulent activity.
Distribution of mobile ad fraud activity worldwide between January and August 2020, by fraud type
based on Adjust’s Fraud Prevention Suite, wider industry metrics may vary
Supplementary notes
The source provides the following definitions:
- software development kit (SDK) spoofing: the creation of legitimate-looking installs with data of real devices without the presence of any actual installs,
- click spamming: a type of advertising fraud that happens when a fraudster executes clicks for users who haven’t made them,
- click injection: a sophisticated form of click-spamming., by publishing (or having access to) an Android app which listens to "install broadcasts," fraudsters detect when other apps are downloaded and trigger clicks before an install completes. The fraudster then receives credit for installs as a consequence.
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adjust. (December 3, 2020). Distribution of mobile ad fraud activity worldwide between January and August 2020, by fraud type [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved February 18, 2025, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1264388/mobile-ad-fraud-type-worldwide/?__sso_cookie_checker=failed
adjust. "Distribution of mobile ad fraud activity worldwide between January and August 2020, by fraud type." Chart. December 3, 2020. Statista. Accessed February 18, 2025. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1264388/mobile-ad-fraud-type-worldwide/?__sso_cookie_checker=failed
adjust. (2020). Distribution of mobile ad fraud activity worldwide between January and August 2020, by fraud type. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: February 18, 2025. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1264388/mobile-ad-fraud-type-worldwide/?__sso_cookie_checker=failed
adjust. "Distribution of Mobile Ad Fraud Activity Worldwide between January and August 2020, by Fraud Type." Statista, Statista Inc., 3 Dec 2020, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1264388/mobile-ad-fraud-type-worldwide/?__sso_cookie_checker=failed
adjust, Distribution of mobile ad fraud activity worldwide between January and August 2020, by fraud type Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1264388/mobile-ad-fraud-type-worldwide/?__sso_cookie_checker=failed (last visited February 18, 2025)
Distribution of mobile ad fraud activity worldwide between January and August 2020, by fraud type [Graph], adjust, December 3, 2020. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1264388/mobile-ad-fraud-type-worldwide/?__sso_cookie_checker=failed