Adalytics' investigation revealed that major brands, including Procter & Gamble, Microsoft, Meta, Ikea, and Mercedes Benz, had their ads served on pages with explicit and offensive content. Many of these ads included JavaScript from brand safety vendors like DoubleVerify and Integral Ad Science, suggesting these technologies failed to prevent such placements. This issue highlights a significant gap in the promised URL-level protection and actual ad placement practices.

The findings prompted calls for immediate improvements in brand safety technologies and full URL transparency from DSPs. Marketers emphasized the need for accurate classification of content to protect brand integrity and avoid placing ads on offensive or harmful pages.

The research underscores the urgent need for better tools and practices to ensure ad placements are genuinely safe and suitable for brand reputation.