Pixalate Finds Ad Fraudsters Targeting ‘ESPN’ & ‘NFL’ CTV Apps During Playoff Games: 106% Increase in App Spoofing

Pixalate’s data science team analyzed 15+ million open programmatic advertising impressions in the U.S. during Q4 2024 and Q1 2025 on the ‘NFL’ and ‘ESPN’ CTV apps on the Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Samsung Smart TV, and Apple TV platforms to compile this research

London, Feb. 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Pixalate, the global market-leading ad fraud protection, privacy, and compliance analytics platform, today released its special report: Big Game Buyers Beware: Ad Fraudsters Targeting ‘ESPN’ and ‘NFL’ During Playoff Games.

The report reveals increased invalid traffic (IVT) rates on ‘NFL’ and ‘ESPN’ Connected TV (CTV) apps downloadable through Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Samsung Smart TV, and Apple TV platforms during football games. This report primarily focuses on ‘App Spoofing’ – a form of IVT/ad fraud in which traffic identifiers are misrepresented, which may hide the true origin of an impression.

Key Findings

• App spoofing rates on the ‘NFL’ and ‘ESPN’ CTV apps were 51% higher during live regular season games compared to non-game days
• App spoofing IVT rates skyrocketed 106% during the final round of the playoffs, as measured by Pixalate

“According to our research, fraudsters typically become more active during major games,” said Patrick McClure, a Research Data Analyst at Pixalate. “Understanding IVT patterns during significant sporting events enables advertisers to refine their targeting strategies and protect their media investments.”

Pixalate’s data science team analyzed 15+ million open programmatic advertising impressions in the U.S. across Q4 2024 and Q1 2025 on the ‘NFL’ and ‘ESPN’ CTV apps on the Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Samsung Smart TV, and Apple TV platforms to compile this research. Pixalate’s datasets, used solely to derive these insights, primarily consist of buy-side open auction programmatic traffic sources. Learn more about the types of invalid traffic detection, as defined by Pixalate.

Download the report for a complete analysis:

• ‘Big Game’ 2025 IVT Risk Report

About Pixalate

Pixalate is a global platform specializing in privacy compliance, ad fraud prevention, and digital ad supply chain data intelligence. Founded in 2012, Pixalate is trusted by regulators, data researchers, advertisers, publishers, ad tech platforms, and financial analysts across the Connected TV (CTV), mobile app, and website ecosystems. Pixalate is accredited by the MRC for the detection and filtration of Sophisticated Invalid Traffic (SIVT). pixalate.com

Disclaimer

The content of this press release, and the Report, Big Game Buyers Beware: Ad Fraudsters Targeting ‘ESPN’ and ‘NFL’ During Playoff Games, reflect Pixalate’s opinions with respect to the factors that Pixalate believes can be useful to the digital media industry. Any data shared is grounded in Pixalate’s proprietary technology and analytics, which Pixalate is continuously evaluating and updating. Any references to outside sources should not be construed as endorsements. Pixalate’s opinions are just that, opinions, which means that they are neither facts nor guarantees. Pixalate is sharing this data not to impugn the standing or reputation of any entity, person or app, but, instead, to report findings and trends pertaining to the time period studied.

CONTACT: Nina Talcott
ntalcott@pixalate.com