Did You Know?
Sophisticated robots can generate multiple page views from an automated fraudulent session.
Wall Street Journal
"The Web-search companies concede that click fraud is an issue but decline to quantify its scope; some outside estimates run as high as 20% of all clicks. Many companies complain that Google, Yahoo and other search engines are vague about how they are tackling the problem, unresponsive to questions about suspect clicks and ineffective when advertisers point out possible abuses."
Arkansas Suit
In February, a similar class action suit was filed in Arkansas against Yahoo, Time Warner (AOL), Ask Jeeves, Disney, Lycos, LookSmart, and FindWhat, in addition to Google. The class would include all customers of all eight search engines' advertising services.
After some confusion about whether the appropriate venue was in state or district court, the case is expected to continue in Arkansas state court.
Upon hearing of the Click Defense lawsuit, the Arkansas plaintiffs' lawyer, Joel Fineberg, was skeptical, saying it seemed redundant. "Our case is substantially broader in that there are more parties involved," he said. "We will be able to address many more individuals and companies."
Kabateck Brown Kellner declined to comment on the merits of their case versus the one in Arkansas . The suit's jurisdiction would extend throughout the United States due to the large sum sought and the residence of the plaintiffs in other states.
Jessie Stricchiola, one of our regular speakers at Search Engine Strategies on the topic, is quoted saying the search engines aren't doing enough about the problem -- and she says despite the refunds Google issues, they are the most "stubborn" and "least willing" to work with advertisers.
PPC ads run by publishers are more problematic. Publishers get paid for clicks on ads on their own site, and are therefore incentivized to fraudulently pay others to click on their ads. Seth Godin thinks that click-fraud is such a serious problem that the company is "a house of cards". "Click fraud" is a term used to describe how Web surfers excessively click on an item found on a Website, inevitably creating problems for the advertiser. Repeated clicking on the advertisement can put the item offline or leave the advertiser with a large bill.
"Click fraud is an increasing concern in the industry," said SPSS President and CEO Jack Noonan. "If left unchecked, click fraud could threaten millions of dollars of online marketing investments and seriously endanger the future viability of Web advertising."
"Marketers can limit their exposure to click fraud by applying predictive Web analytics software to online campaign responses and Website activity," added Noonan. "This enables companies to monitor what happens after the first click and identify advertisements that exhibit irregular behavior patterns." SPSS has compiled five rules to help companies overcome click fraud:
- Determine the policy for online search advertisements before signing any contracts.
- Use Web analytics to better understand traffic to your Website.
- Monitor Website activity closely through the entire lifespan of an online campaign.
- Apply predictive analytics software to anticipate fraud.
Flag possible fraud cases with online search advertisers as soon as identified.
|
