It’s not exactly believed to be poised to destroy online advertising, but click fraud – a ruse involving people clicking on advertisers’ Web links with no intention to buy, costing advertisers thousands if not millions in fruitless traffic – is becoming a growing concern among a number of Internet search players.
Web merchant Tammy Harrison, who sells computer software to doctors and other medical professionals, told reporters click fraud has cost her hundreds of hours to document and, between that and the diversion of her customers to competitors, at least $100,000 in potential sales.
"Click fraud has gotten out of control," she said. "It's stealing money from my pocket. It's just as bad as someone walking into a store and taking a television."
Some, like Chris Churchill, chief executive of search engine research analysts Fathom Online, think click fraud “exists, but [is] mostly a big paranoia.” Others, like Lisa Wehr, president of search engine advertising consultants Oneupweb, call it “the big elephant standing in the middle of the living room.
“Everyone sees it and knows it’s there,” she said, “but no one is quite sure what to do about it.”
Wehr and others cited in a few published reports estimate between 10 and 20 percent of ad clicks are done under false pretenses. Google and Yahoo have said click fraud is a growing problem but add that they take steps to improve inside controls and foster advertiser vigilance.
"We are always worried about it,” Google chief executive Eric Schmidt said to reporters, “but it hasn't been a material issue so far." That, however, hasn’t stopped Google from adding click fraud patrollers to its staff – and breaking up a reported scheme to generate “several thousand” fake transactions, according to the company’s chief financial officer George Reyes.
But there are cynics like Alchemist Media, a company which tries to help business find problems and negotiate refunds. That company said reassurances like Google’s are no surprise when you figure that they lose if advertisers cut spending. "Click fraud isn't going to destroy the industry,” said Alchemist president Jessie Stricchiola, “but it's not going away either."
