Even more troubling, some major ad providers are no longer providing any disclosures on their widgets. Google, which used to dress its text ad units with a straightforward “Ads by Google” label, now provides widgets sporting a lonely blue triangle icon from AdChoices. In many cases, the AdChoices text doesn’t even appear unless a user hovers over the triangle. A recent survey by Parks Associates found that unfortunately only a minority of consumers understood the intent of the blue triangle icon.

Given that Google’s text ad units are often interspersed within the content on thousands of web pages, the obvious outcome is that consumers will click on the text thinking it’s real content, not advertising. Relying on any sole icon is insufficient and arguably deceptive.

From the article, "Save Native Ads From the Slippery Slope of Deception" by Ash Nashed. 

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