Facebook, Facebook Audience Network, and Instagram have all been awarded a Digital Trading Standards Group (DTSG) Brand Safety Certification by JICWEBS (Joint Industry Committee for Web Standards).

The certification was handed to the group of Facebook entities after an independent audit of their advertising processes against JICWEBS’ DTSG Good Practice Principles. This audit confirmed, in JICWEBS’ opinion, that Facebook and its brands “minimise ad misplacement as described in the JICWEBS DTSG Good Practice Principles”. However, JICWEBS did not test the effectiveness of any of highlighted processes or policies for ad misplacement at Facebook.

“Digital advertising builds brands, drives growth and creates jobs. It is vital that advertisers can trust where their ads are appearing, and we are fully behind the industrys desire to raise standards in digital advertising,” said Steve Hatch, VP of Northern Europe at Facebook. “We support JICWEBS’ robust standards, rigorous verification process and the industry transparency it provides, and are delighted to have achieved DTSG Brand Safety Certification.”

The principles are the UK standard for brand safety and gaining certification is a requirement for achieving the IAB UK Gold Standard, forms part of the Association of Online Publishing (AOP) Ad Quality Charter, and is included in the ISBA (Incorporated Society of British Advertisers) Media Services framework.

“Advertisers want greater trust and transparency in the digital ad chain,” said Jules Kendrick, JICWEBS CEO. “JICWEBS’ certification shows advertisers who is making a genuine commitment to protect their investment. We hope all parts of the supply chain will share the same level of detail through our certification scheme.”