A guide to investigating digital ad libraries
How to dig into ad libraries from Google, Meta and other platforms to track spending, narratives, campaigns and more
Digital advertising is a half a trillion dollar a year industry and a core element of global marketing and election campaigns. Digital ads are also commonly used in influence operations, scams and cybercrime.
Yet, in my experience, ads are rarely mentioned or taught in OSINT and digital investigative courses. I believe they’re one of the least investigated and most poorly understood aspects of the digital economy. I’ve been trying to change that by giving ad investigation workshops and by drawing attention to tools and techniques in this newsletter. I previously listed free digital ad tools and described a reporting methodology I used while investigating Google’s ad business.