• by Tobi Elkin  @tobielkin, April 11, 2017

As more marketers work on rooting out ad fraud, the Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG), an industry initiative dedicated to combating criminal activity in the digital advertising supply chain, on Tuesday said that seven more companies have earned its Certified Against Fraud Seal for 2017, bringing the total to date to 23.

The seven are Forensiq, LKQD, Publicis Groupe, Publishers Clearing House, Receptiv (formerly MediaBrix), Sociomantic Labs, and Verta Media. Those companies join the initial group named late last year.

TAG also said that more than 200 companies in the industry have applied for TAG registration to date, and additional companies will be recognized in the coming months. The registration is a prerequisite for participation in TAG certification seal programs.

Companies that obtain TAG registration have been verified as legitimate participants in the digital advertising industry through a proprietary background check and review process conducted by Dun & Bradstreet and subsequent approval by TAG. After their approval, companies can be searched by name or by t TAG-IDs through the TAG registry. 2017 marks the first full year of certification for TAG's anti-fraud, anti-piracy, and inventory quality programs.

In addition to addressing ad fraud, TAG focuses on combating malware, fighting ad-supported Internet piracy to promote brand integrity, and promoting brand safety through greater transparency.