Click Fraud

If you're using AdWords or AdSense you've probably seen an emerging trend within the world of computing known as "click fraud". What precisely is it? And how does it work?

The truth is that AdSense makes use of a payment method that pays a set quantity of dollars to a webmaster (someone who displays the AdSense advertising banner in their website) each time someone clicks on the banner. Click fraud is an attempt to get people to click the ads so that they can earn more money.

Some people are setting websites with solely for the purpose of making money from the Google AdSense program. The users get an amazing number of clicks by using various ways, some complicated and sophisticated, while others are basic and easy.

A way to make it more complicated is the use of the so-called "hitbots". They are software programs that mimic clicking on the links in AdSense banners (there are others that actually click the banners, too).).

Google's AdSense protection mechanism isn't perfect, and anyone can discover ways to bypass the mechanism to protect themselves only by performing the Google search.

A different, less basic method is to employ a number of people living in a low country to visit the hyperlinks to your website. This means that they will be able to sit for hours and simply click on links, so that you can make money. They're from nations such as India and Pakistan, and are willing to work for $0.50 per hour.

There is an issue with this method. If Google receives a huge amount of clicks from one address, both the address and the website that displayed that AdSense advertisement will get removed and the illegal behaviour could even lead to the scammer being sued.

To stop this from occurring, people make use of numerous proxy servers to avoid the possibility of clicking. These are trojans that are found on computers all over the globe (though they are mostly found located in the US). The most frightening thing is that these clicks appear to be coming from a real computer, which makes them very difficult to identify.

And don't assume that this happens only in isolated cases. There's a lot of criminal activity within this area.

In reality, there's many things that could happen when search engine companies fail to enhance their security using programs such as AdSense this kind of criminal activity can become more destructive.

Google has a strict policy in regards to click fraud. It has been sued by those who use similar methods before. However, while the giant of search engines tries to limit the possibility of fraud by clicking, there is certainly the potential for improvements.

It is believed that up to 20% of clicks that occur after one's AdSense link are made to collect cash from the person paying for the advertisement. Many people believe that the number of fraudulent clicks at least twice as high.

There are many more scams involving fraud by clicking, for example, the groups of AdSense publishers who click one another's hyperlinks (which is known in the context of "clicking rings", or sending out emails to people in order that they click on these hyperlinks.

Despite Google keeping the click fraud in check the issue is causing concern for advertisers who use AdWords however, advertising on Google's AdSense is still a good investment for the advertiser unlike traditional non-targeted advertising strategies.

There are several methods to guard against these strategies and every advertiser should be aware enough to use these strategies. Many advertisers opt to stay clear of the entire content network because they fear click fraud.