IAB UK brings added rigour to its gold standard with ABC audit 

Cristina Blanaru Creativity, Marketing, Media

Since being appointed by IAB UK following their initial announcement, ABC has already completed a robust audit of the internal processes it uses to ensure that businesses comply with the Gold Standard requirements.

IAB UK is announcing the news of its collaboration with ABC at its Gold Standard 2.0 Townhall event , along with other developments to date.

Introducing a trusted, independent auditor to support the Gold Standard is one of the key updates being made to the future iteration – Gold Standard 2.0 – which IAB UK intends to launch later in 2020. The purpose of further developing the Standard is to bring added rigour to the certification process, as well as to incorporate steps to address privacy concerns within the digital supply chain.

Tim Elkington, IAB UK’s Chief Digital Officer, explained:

By appointing ABC – an independent third-party auditor – to audit the Gold Standard certification process, we are not only providing assurance of its thoroughness, we are also able to ensure that we put in place internal measures to maintain this level of rigour as the Gold Standard grows and evolves.

Simon Redlich, Chief Executive at ABC, said:

We’re delighted that IAB UK has appointed ABC to independently review its processes for confirming businesses’ compliance with the Gold Standard requirements. We’re pleased to deliver our extensive auditing experience and support IAB UK’s stated goals to enhance rigour and transparency around this important industry initiative.

Industry-owned auditor ABC is no stranger to online auditing processes, having played an integral role in developing and auditing online standards for nearly 25 years. It’s the auditor of choice for more than 85% of companies choosing to adhere to the JICWEBS DTSG Brand Safety Principles, which is an integral part of the IAB UK Gold Standard.

ABC conducted the world’s first Brand Safety audit back in 2006, and in the same year partnered with the IAB US to create the International IAB/ ABC Spiders and Robots List. It helped launch JICWEBS (the Joint Industry Currency for Web Standards) in 1999. In 2013, ABC’s viewability testing was the first in the world to be performed in a controlled, walled garden environment.

ABC is a leading industry-owned auditor for media products and services, with specialist skills in digital ad trading. Through its experienced teams, it provides an independent service checking compliance across a range of media standards. Its rigorous auditing of multiple business types underpins the work of other Standards setters such as BARB, JICWEBS and TAG.

The Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB UK) is the industry body for digital advertising, committed to building a sustainable future for digital advertising. We do this by bringing the industry together through our 1,200 members including media owners, agencies, ad tech companies and brands to tackle and address the big issues, celebrate digital and help businesses prepare for the future.

The Gold Standard was launched by IAB UK in October 2017, with the first companies certified in early 2018. It has three fundamental aims – to reduce ad fraud, to improve the digital advertising experience and to increase brand safety. There are currently 95 companies certified – spanning publishers, platforms, media agencies and ad tech companies – and a further 14 registered to certify. In addition, six advertisers have publicly committed their support for the Gold Standard. More information is available here.