How to spot it
- There are two download buttons and the larger, greener one is the advert.
- The label says sponsored, promoted, partner or presented by, in the smallest type on the page.
- An article recommends a product and every link is a purchase link.
- A search result sits above the others in the same typeface with a one-word marker.
- The item is inside the content column but has its own faint border, which is the only thing separating it from editorial.
Why it works on you
You navigate by shape, not by reading. After a few seconds on a page you know where the buttons are and you stop inspecting them, which is efficient and is exactly what is being borrowed. An advert that matches the shape of the page inherits the trust you extended to the page. The disclosure is usually present, and present is not the same as noticed.
What to do
- On a download page, find the actual filename before clicking anything.
- Read the top left of an item, where sponsorship markers are conventionally placed and conventionally small.
- If an article's every recommendation links to one retailer, treat it as an advertisement that has been written well.
- Hover a link and read the destination. It is the one label the advertiser does not control.
Where the law stands
In the United States the FTC's Enforcement Policy Statement on Deceptively Formatted Advertisements and its Native Advertising Guide require that an advert be identifiable as an advert before a consumer engages with it, and that disclosure be clear, prominent and near the claim. Endorsements and paid reviews are covered by the Endorsement Guides. In the European Union, failing to identify commercial intent is listed as a misleading omission in the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive, and Article 26 of the Digital Services Act requires platform advertising to be clearly marked in real time.
This is a description of published regulation, not legal advice, and rules in this area have changed more than once. The sources below are the primary ones.