Bot fraud, digital advertising's albatross, will suck $6.3 billion from the industry next year, according to a much anticipated report highlighting the threat from the Association of National Advertisers and WhiteOps.

Bot fraud is among the digital ad demons the industry has been trying to excise. The report outlines some of the risks associated with programmatic ad channels, but there are technology-minded players who feel such automated advertising networks could eventually solve the fraud issue.

Industry group Interactive Advertising Bureau recently set up a special task force called the Trustworthy Accountability Group to combat fraud. "Research like this is critical in building a program that will excise this type of criminal activity out of the supply chain," Linda Woolley, TAG's CEO said in a statement today. "Fraudulent traffic, as well as malware and IP piracy, are obstacles to the growth of the digital economy, and TAG is committed to eliminating them."

Here is the scope of the problem, per analysts at SunTrust Robinson Humphreys: