DoubleVerify has launched two new automated brand-safety categories: a 'Highly Illicit: Do Not Monetize' filter for content flagged by experts like NCMEC, and a 'P2P Sharing and Streaming' avoidance tool. These features are designed to help advertisers block ad delivery on high-risk domains and P2P platforms that may host illegal content.
The immediate implication is a shift toward default automated blocking for the most high-risk content segments, moving beyond traditional manual exclusion lists. As the industry faces increased scrutiny over ad-supported monetization of illegal content, this move attempts to establish a safety baseline that covers both web domains and mobile applications. In the broader ecosystem, this puts pressure on competitors and programmatic exchanges to adopt similar open-source or shared risk databases. Watch for whether platforms like Google and Amazon officially integrate these specific DV categories, as their involvement is critical for industry-wide scale.
DoubleVerify's Highly Illicit: Do Not Monetize category was triggered by an Adalytics report revealing ads from brands including the NFL, Pepsi, and Sony appearing on sites flagged by NCMEC, with blame assigned to parties including Amazon, Google, and Integral Ad Science. DV responded by making both the Highly Illicit and P2P Sharing and Streaming categories enabled by default across more than 100 media-buying platforms, and the company made these tools available without charge to all platforms regardless of whether they are DV clients, with nearly 30 platforms having implemented the Highly Illicit category control at the time of its IWF partnership announcement.
The IWF detected more webpages containing CSAM in 2024 than in any previous year of its 29-year history, and under the collaboration DV will flag potentially harmful content not yet identified by IWF for verification, law enforcement referral, and takedown. DV also stated it is engaging with third-party technology partners to enhance automated detection of suspected illicit content as part of its classification process.
DoubleVerify has continued to build transparency tooling alongside its CSAM protections. In late February 2025, the company announced expanded access to URL-level reporting capabilities in three phases, beginning with advertisers using DV's Brand Safety and Suitability technology requesting URL-level insights, followed by direct integration into DV Pinnacle, and later extension to third-party platforms for external analysis. This reporting expansion gives advertisers the ability to audit exactly where impressions served, complementing the pre-bid blocking that the Highly Illicit and P2P categories provide.
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