Malwarebytes reported in December 2022 that an ad-fraud operation used popunder ads on adult websites to load a hidden page of Google ads. The researchers estimated that one decoy site could theoretically generate $276,629 in monthly revenue at an assumed $3.50 cost per thousand impressions (CPM). That was a model, not proof of money received: the investigation did not establish the operator’s actual earnings or the campaign’s total.
How the popunder scheme worked
A popunder is a browser window or tab that opens behind the page a person is viewing. In the campaign described by Malwarebytes, inexpensive popunder traffic from adult websites brought visitors to a decoy page designed to load ads out of sight.
- Buy popunder traffic. The operator paid adult websites to open the popunder. Malwarebytes said such traffic could cost as little as $0.05 CPM, depending on geography and other parameters; that is an acquisition-cost example, not the campaign’s Google ad revenue.
- Load a plausible-looking decoy. The popunder contained scraped tutorials, guides, and other articles that appeared suitable for ordinary Google ads.
- Cover the page with adult content. A dynamically assembled iframe displaying an adult site covered the decoy. Malwarebytes described the code as heavily obfuscated, which made automated analysis more difficult. The adult content was imported into the page; the investigation did not identify the adult site as the fraud operator.
- Refresh the hidden ads. The decoy refreshed its article content and Google ads about every nine seconds, according to Malwarebytes. A visitor could keep browsing in the original tab while the popunder loaded ads they did not see.
- Exploit clicks as well as impressions. Malwarebytes described clickjacking: if a visitor brought the popunder forward and clicked what appeared to be a video or thumbnail, the click could activate a Google ad beneath the adult content.
Malwarebytes’ Jérôme Segura summarized the design as “a clever way to hide a bogus blog loaded with many more ads, most of them hidden behind a fullscreen pornographic iframe.”
How Malwarebytes estimated the potential revenue
The estimate applied an assumed ad rate to an estimated number of impressions for one decoy website. Malwarebytes used Similarweb figures for that site, then combined them with its own estimate of the page’s ad-loading rate.
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| Input or result | Figure | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly visits | 281,900 | Similarweb data for one decoy website, reported by Malwarebytes in 2022 |
| Average visit duration | 7 minutes 45 seconds | Similarweb data for that site, reported by Malwarebytes in 2022 |
| Ad impressions per minute | About 35 | Malwarebytes’ estimate based on captured ad requests in 2022 |
| Estimated monthly impressions | 76,465,375 | Malwarebytes’ calculation for one site using the visit and impression estimates |
| Assumed CPM | $3.50 | The ad rate Malwarebytes used in its 2022 model |
| Theoretical monthly revenue | $276,629 | Malwarebytes’ calculation for one site at the assumed CPM; not a verified payment |
The calculation shows how a large volume of hidden ad impressions could translate into a substantial modeled amount. It does not show that the operator received that sum. Actual revenue would depend on factors including the rate paid for impressions and whether activity was counted as valid; Malwarebytes did not report payment records.
Why real visitors did not make the ad activity legitimate
This was not described simply as a botnet generating fake visits. Malwarebytes said real people, IP addresses, cookies, and browser settings could be involved. But an impression can still be invalid when an ad is loaded behind content the visitor cannot see and receives no genuine attention. The scheme exploited real browsing sessions to create ad activity without meaningful exposure to the ads.
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Google’s general description of invalid activity defines it as interactions that do not come from real people with real interest in an ad. It says its Ad Traffic Quality team uses human reviewers, automatic filters, machine learning, and research to identify and filter invalid activity. That description explains Google’s general approach, not the specific method by which it handled this campaign. (Google Ad Traffic Quality.)
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What happened and what remains unconfirmed
Malwarebytes said it reported the invalid traffic to Google and thanked the company for quickly shutting down the campaign. The investigation did not give a specific takedown date or technical account of Google’s response. Google’s published policy lists practices such as arbitrage—destinations whose primary purpose is showing ads—cloaking, and attempts to circumvent ad review as examples of abusing the ad network. That general policy context should not be read as a public, case-specific adjudication. (Google Ads policy terms.)
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- The campaign operator’s identity was not established in Malwarebytes’ investigation.
- The investigation did not confirm how many sites were involved, how long the campaign ran, or its total impressions and earnings.
- The $276,629 estimate applies to one decoy site for a modeled month at an assumed $3.50 CPM; it is not a verified campaign-wide total.
For advertisers, the case illustrates why traffic volume alone is not proof of valuable audience exposure. Reviewing where visits come from and whether ads receive genuine visibility can help surface suspicious patterns, but this historical investigation does not establish a particular monitoring service or product as a solution.
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