Click Fraud Threatens Online Advertisers

Advertising Budgets Eroded by Web Criminals

Click fraud criminals are costing online advertisers thousands of dollars. They don't have to clear security or hack into computers or participate in any sophisticated criminal techniques. Their criminal action is as easy as clicking a link. In such a seemingly feeble act, click fraud seriously defeats online advertising efforts (and dollars).

Online Advertising Growing

In this Internet age, the cyber world has become a major playing field in advertising. Research by the Interactive Advertising Bureau found 2008 Internet advertising revenues amounted to more than $23 billion in the US alone. Advertisers are enticed by the Internet's expansive reach of 6.7 billion Internet users worldwide, according to InternetWorldStats.com. They are also attracted to the measurability of the online medium. Online advertisements can now be tracked for click rates, cost per click, cost per action and more. Ads can be narrowly targeted to ensure ad money isn't wasted on those outside of the advertiser's target market. It's an advertisers dream come true: Targeted advertising with the ability to measure performance.

What it all boils down to is more bang for your buck. Unless click fraud intrudes your online presence, taking your bang and your buck.

Click Fraud Threatens Online Advertising Budgets

Click fraud is a serious Internet crime that wastes advertisers' time and money. Click fraud occurs when a person, application or script clicks an advertisement with the sole purpose of defeating the competition or wasting advertising efforts (see techFAQ's What is Clickfraud? page to learn more). Advertisers usually pay an incremental rate per click, so each time the click fraud perp clicks on an advertisement, the criminal is costing the advertiser money -- money wasted on someone who clearly has no legitimate interest in the business. The advantages of PPC advertising disintegrate when click fraud skews marketing data and wastes advertising budgets.

Although click fraud is a felony in many areas, punishment is inconsistent. The problem is worsening, and there is an immediate need for tighter click fraud security. According to Click Forensics, click fraud attempts increased 17.1 percent in 2009, reaching a record high.

The only way to really protect yourself against this malicious Internet crime is to keep a close watch on your advertising data to look for suspicious activity. The crime is pretty obvious to spot: the average person doesn't click your advertisement 500 or more times in a row. If you don't have time to babysit your ads, consider purchasing click fraud prevention software. The software expense is miniscule in comparison to the thousands of dollars click fraud threatens to take from your ad budget. Is that a risk you are willing to take?