Media measurement platform Integral Ad Science's (IAS) Threat Lab has uncovered an extensive ad fraud scheme, labelled Vapor, that leverages fake Android apps to deploy endless, intrusive full-screen interstitial video ads.
Vapor exploits users and ad networks by disguising legitimate utilities, health and fitness, and lifestyle Android apps but then flood users with intrusive ads, allowing ad fraud to proliferate at scale.
Derived from its ability to 'evaporate' any real functionality from apps, IAS Threat Lab identified over 180 app IDs with over 56+ million downloads generating 200+ million daily bid requests that were stripped of their functionality and leveraged solely to drain ad revenues.
Threat Lab identified over 180 app IDs since early 2024 as part of the Vapor scheme, collectively amassing over 56 million downloads and generating over 200 million bid requests daily, with no real functionality delivered to users.
As a result of IAS' findings, Google has removed all identified apps (more than 180 apps) from the Play Store.
Google Play Protect will warn users and automatically disable these apps, even when they originate from sources outside of Google Play.
IAS continues to monitor the Vapor operation as threat actors adapt their tactics and as new apps are added to the scheme.
Asia’s app market has grown tenfold since 2017—more than twice the global average—fueling mobile ad spend, which hit $9.1 billion in 2023.
However, digital ad fraud has been reported to cost an estimated $17 million daily, with app install fraud and SDK spoofing (42%) as the top threats.
Despite these growing threats, only 51% of businesses in Southeast Asia plan to adopt ad fraud detection tools, which is alarming given that 82% of businesses rely on mobile apps for customer engagement, and 47% use them for brand visibility.
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