Help protect people beyond your browser.

Your ad blocker can help Fray investigate scam ads that steal from people and fraud ads that steal from businesses. With your permission, the ads it blocks can become evidence that helps protect others too.

Why report an ad that's already blocked?

Blocking an ad protects your screen. The advertiser behind it can still pay to reach someone else. Scammers can also hide their ads from automated checks, so an ad that appears in your browser may be one our own checks miss.

Reports help Fray investigate and send evidence to the platform that showed the ad. If the platform removes the advertiser's account, its ads stop reaching other people too, including people without an ad blocker.

When does reporting happen?

Reporting is optional and requires an ad blocker that supports Fray. Your informed and explicit consent is required before you are enrolled. Your ad blocker must explain what is shared and how it is used, and wait for you to actively opt in. You can withdraw your consent and stop future reporting.

Once you agree, reporting can happen automatically when your ad blocker encounters an ad for a brand on Fray's watchlist: the list of brands whose ads Fray investigates. The ad can be reported even if your blocker hides it. You do not need to click it or visit its destination.

By default, the browser retrieves the advertiser details and checks its account against the brand’s authorized accounts. Authorized accounts, unwatched domains and inconclusive checks do not generate reports. An account absent from a closed list is a reason to investigate, not proof of fraud.

What information is shared?

The report contains the ad’s displayed domain, available creative and markup, and advertiser details. It can still be linked: the ad’s click links keep the ad platform’s own parameters, including a precise click timestamp, so the platform can match a report to its own records. Rounding the report’s time to the hour does not hide that timestamp. By default the report contains none of Google’s lookup values. Your search keywords are stripped from the ad creative and URL while the remaining ad evidence is retained. An ad blocker can choose to include your search query with its reports, but only if it tells you before you take part. If it does, the ad is sent as shown, with your keywords left in. It can also choose an optional mode that sends Google’s lookup values instead of advertiser details, so that Fray looks up the advertiser, and it must tell you about that first too. Those values are tied to your Google session, include a precise timestamp and can link reports to a Google page or request. In that mode ads are sent before their account is checked. User identifiers are removed before a report is sent.

Fray uses the ad data only to identify scams, fraud and ads that spread malware. Raw reports are never sold or licensed.

Our approach to data use · How the ad's click URL is handled · How reports protect privacy

How does a report become evidence?

Fray's analysts check the advertiser against the accounts the brand has identified as its own and investigate the ad. An account being absent from a brand's records is not enough to establish fraud.

We try to reproduce the ad on our own machines and gather supporting evidence. When an ad is hidden from those checks, reports contributed by ad blockers can still support an investigation.

We file the evidence with the platform that served the ad. The platform decides whether to remove the ad or account. Fray handles the filing and any disputes; contributing ad blockers receive a feed of confirmed scams to help protect their users.

Who runs Fray and receives the evidence?

Fray is run and funded by Marcode, a brand-protection company in London. Its paid fraud detection work funds the analysts and infrastructure, so taking part is free. We've been running Fray in our own ad blocker since early 2025.

Fray and Marcode's commercial business share the same analysts and systems. Ad evidence is provided to the ad network, the affected brand and law enforcement where applicable. No user data is ever collected.

Alec Bertram, Marcode's co-founder, is responsible for what Fray publishes and how it operates. Questions about Fray can go to [email protected]. About Marcode and Fray's funding.

How long are reports kept?

Fray keeps accepted reports for up to 90 days for investigation. Combined counts and investigation case material have separate retention rules. Retention and deletion details.

How can I take part?

Participation happens through your ad blocker. Check with its provider whether it supports Fray and how to manage your reporting choice. If it does not support Fray yet, you can share our information for ad blocker developers with them.