January 18, 2005

A new service aimed at stopping click fraud in search marketing has been launched in the UK by ClickDetective.

ClickDetective works by putting in the loading page the ad links to a tag that makes it so click-throughs can be tracked. Firms can use IP addresses to determine where the clicks come from and which campaign led to the clicks.

West said that if irregular patterns or suspected fraud are uncovered, clients can use ClickDetective to pop up a window suggesting the user bookmark the page.

The service is aimed at firms advertising on pay-per-click (PPC) networks like Overture, Google and Espotting.

Click fraud involves spurious or harmful clicking of sponsored links, which ClickDetective says can mean much extra cost for PPC advertisers in unnecessary click-throughs.

ClickDetective founder Alan West said that an analysis of click patterns for clients reveals that between 5 percent and 10 percent of clicks seem to have irregular patterns (for example, the same person clicking the same link a large number of times in a short space of time).

"It doesn't necessarily mean they are fraudulent," he said. But he added that one client it has worked with found evidence that click fraud was being committed by a rival company.

ClickDetective works by placing in the loading page the ad links to a tag that enables click-throughs to be tracked. Firms can use IP addresses to identify where the clicks come from and which campaign led to the clicks.

West said that if irregular patterns or suspected fraud are uncovered, clients can use ClickDetective to pop up a suggestion that the user should bookmark the page.

If the fraud continues, they could send a warning that the user is being tracked. "You can't deny access but you can alert the users that you are onto them, which should act as a deterrent," added West.

Source: eCommerce Times

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