Today I announced joining the security startup VPT Digital as Chief Scientist. VPT operates in a space I feel I pioneered: Automated testing to find misconduct in affiliate marketing. As early as summer 2004 (not a typo!), I was catching affiliates using adware to claim commission they hadn’t earned. I later built automation to scale up my efforts.
Think affiliate fraud is no big deal? I was proud to recover large amounts for my clients. For one large client, I once proved that nine of its top ten biggest affiliates were breaking its rules – which might sound like a disaster, and in some sense it was, but ejecting the rule-breakers yielded ample funds to pay more to those who genuinely drove incremental value. Affiliate marketing experts may also remember Shawn Hogan and Brian Dunning, who faced both criminal and civil litigation for affiliate fraud – allegations that the FBI said stemmed from reports from me. Litigation reported that defendants collected more than $20 million in 18 months. “No big deal,” indeed.
The web is a lot messier than when I started down this path, and tricksters use a remarkable range of methods. Reviewing VPT’s automation, I’ve been suitably impressed. They test a range of adware, but also cookie-stuffing, typosquatting, and more. Of course they test Windows adware and browser plug-ins, but they and have Mac and mobile capabilities too. They test from multiple geographies, at all times of day. Their testing is fully automated, yielding spiffy reports in a modern dashboard – plus email alerts and API integration. It’s all the features I used to dream of building, and then some.
I’ll be working with VPT part-time in the coming months and years to continue to hone their offerings, including making their reports even more accessible to those who don’t want to be experts at affiliate fraud. I’ll also blog about highlights from their findings.