An ad-delivered scam is a fraud campaign that uses online advertising to make first contact with potential victims. An ad may appear in search results, on a website, or in an app, then lead to a deceptive page, a fake support number, or another fraudulent offer.
Because ads can look routine and may borrow the branding of trusted companies, they can lend credibility to social engineering. In a support scam, for example, an ad may direct users to a counterfeit help page that urges them to call a number. Defenses include verifying support details through a known official channel, reporting suspicious ads, and monitoring for brand impersonation and scam landing pages. Reaching an ad or page alone does not establish that a device was compromised or that a victim suffered financial loss.