WASHINGTON DC/LONDON: The Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG), the advertising industry initiative tasked with fighting criminal activity and building trust, is opening a new office in London to accelerate its global expansion.

According to a press statement, TAG CEO Mike Zaneis said the organisation expects its move into Europe will help EU-based and global companies “better understand and more easily join TAG’s efforts”.

“Piracy, fraud, malware, and lack of transparency are global challenges, and they require global engagement to address them,” he said.

“To stop the criminals who steal our money and damage our supply chain, we must set high standards for all companies in our industry, regardless of where they are based or operate, and then enforce those standards worldwide,” he added.

In that endeavour, more than 130 non-US companies based in 27 countries have now applied for TAG registration and the TAG ID, which are baseline requirements for participation in TAG's certification programs.

Its new European office, which is based in London despite the UK’s official departure from the EU next year, will be led by Nick Stringer, the former director of regulatory affairs at the Internet Advertising Bureau UK (IAB UK) and former chair of the European Interactive Digital Advertising Alliance (EDAA).

TAG has a strong relationship with the IAB UK, which is one of the key trade bodies that supports the JICWEBS digital advertising best practice initiative in the UK.

And just six weeks ago, TAG and JICWEBS announced that they planned to align many of their key initiatives to establish a consistent approach to tackling ad fraud, malware and other problems that have been plaguing the industry.

TAG’s latest link up in Europe suggests another indication of its determination to “take the long-term lead on fighting fraud, malware, and piracy” around the world.

Sourced from TAG; additional reporting by WARC staff