How to Prevent Click Fraud: When it comes to business, the old adage “You’ve got to spend money to make money,” couldn’t be more true. Aside from the financial outlay to develop your product and manufacture it, and all the overhead that comes with owning a business, you are responsible for marketing your product so the public knows that your product exists.
You’ve set aside some marketing dollars to spread awareness and attract people to your brand and your website. You’ve looked into a variety of advertising options, and determined that pay-per-click (PPC) advertising is a sound way to spend your marketing budget. After all, you only pay when users click on your ad, so you only pay to advertise to people who are at least mildly interested in what you offer.
How to Prevent Click Fraud
PPC advertising can provide a healthy return on investment – unless you become the victim of click fraud. By understanding what click fraud is, and being aware of the tools that are available to protect yourself and your investment, PPC can be an excellent choice to market your business.
What is click fraud?
Click fraud happens when a person or a bot clicks on an ad, button, or hyperto trick the platform into thinking there is more interaction than there actually is.
With PPC advertising, click fraud can happen for one of two reasons:
- The website owner who is hosting the ad will click on the repeatedly to increase the amount of money the business must pay them.
- A company’s competitor may employ click fraud to divert from the business’s marketing budget.
Interestingly enough, sometimes it’s the business itself that will engage in click fraud. Search engines like Google rely on the click-through rate – how many people have visited a site because of a certain – to determine search rankings. Sometimes, a business owner will attempt to scam the system, inflating the number of clicks through click fraud and moving up the search engine ranks so that more actual users will find and visit their page.
Any type of click fraud can be damaging to a business which is why you’ll want to protect yourself against this illegal practice.
“wp-image-136400 size-full” title=”How to Prevent Click Fraud” src=”https://www.tipsclear.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/How-to-Prevent-Click-Fraud.jpg” alt=”How to Prevent Click Fraud” width=”1000″ height=”668″ /> How to Prevent Click FraudWhat is a click bot?
You’ve likely heard of click fraud bots, but do you know how they operate? It’s estimated that bots comprise roughly 52% of all internet traffic. Harmful bots (like fraud bots) make up a large part of this number.
So what are click bots and what are they doing to our websites? Click bots are designed to carry out click fraud. They vary from relatively simple (access webpage and click on the desired link) to advanced (mimic the actions a human would take such as moving the mouse and clicking at uneven intervals). The more advanced a bot is, the more difficult it is to distinguish it from a legitimate user.
Rather than attempt to create hundreds of thousands of clicks from one device with a single IP address (this bot traffic would be immediately suspicious), bots are installed across many devices, often through malware. This means that the device owner is completely unaware that their electronic property is being used for nefarious purposes.
Bots aren’t always to blame for click fraud. Some scammers will employ people to manually perform click fraud. While it’s more difficult to recognize human fraud, it’s considerably less efficient than utilizing fraud bots.
Click Fraud Prevention
Instances of click fraud are not uncommon. A recent study from the University of Baltimore found that in 2020 click fraud cost marketers over $35 billion.
Search engines like Google have put practices in place to protect businesses from click fraud. These include:
- Automated detection systems built with machine learning and complex algorithms to keep ad platforms clean.
- Manual reviews when invalid activity is suspected or brought to their attention.
- Advanced research to uncover s of invalid traffic and prevent them from entering their networks.
Knowing that Google is looking out for your business is great news, though it’s still important to be proactive to protect your business. The first step is creating ads that are more difficult for scammers to target. You can consider allocating more budget to social media ads that are less keyword-focused and therefore harder to search for.
You also have the option to be more targeted with your desired audience which will lessen your chances of encountering click fraud. Being more specific about the geographic locations your ads target and avoid can also provide an added layer of protection from click fraud.
Next, you can help prevent click fraud by keeping a close eye on your ads and your ad spend. The moment you suspect fraud, it’s time to jump into action. If you’ve detected fraudulent clicks coming from specific IP addresses, Google Ads will allow you to block these IP addresses.
Click Fraud Detection
Click fraud is a major problem for businesses that rely on ad revenue to stay afloat. Whether it is through automated bots or human actors, hackers and scammers have devised countless methods of finding ways to cheat the system and profit from clicks on ads. Even the most highly protective business may be vulnerable to click fraud attacks, and this has led many companies to seek out outside help in terms of click fraud detection.
There are a number of third-party services that specialize in click fraud detection and prevention. These range from simple algorithms that aim to filter out suspicious activity, to complex networks that use big data analytics to pinpoint potentially fraudulent behavior.
Some of the most trusted providers in this area include ClickGuard, ClickIQ, ClickCease, and ClickPerAct. With these tools at your disposal, you can ensure that your advertising budget is protected against malicious manipulation and allows you to focus on what matters most: growing your business.
1. ClickCease
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ClickCease is a powerful tool for maintaining safe and efficient online activity. Whether you are browsing in your home or office, ClickCease offers unmatched protection from harmful ads, phishing scams, and other digital threats.
Its advanced filtering technology is constantly updating to keep up with the latest trends in cybercrime, ensuring that your device is always well-defended against these malicious actors. In addition, ClickCease features an intuitive interface that makes it easy to visualize your online activity and take action against unsolicited content.
Whether you are new to ClickCease or a long-time user, this software is a vital re for anyone who wants to browse the web with peace of mind. So why wait? Click now and start protecting yourself online with ClickCease!
Price: Standard Plan starts at $59 per month; Pro Plan starts at $79 per month
2. PPC Shield
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PPC Shield is a powerful tool for optimizing PPC campaigns, helping marketers to increase their click-through rates and drive more traffic to their websites.
PPC Shield functions by automatically analyzing PPC ad performance in real-time, identifying which ads are delivering the best results and which are underperforming. It then makes recommendations for optimizing these ads based on a range of factors, including keyword placement, creative appeal, and bidding strategies.
With PPC Shield’s advanced algorithms and automatic optimization features, marketers can maximize their PPC success while spending less time managing their campaigns.
Whether you’re an experienced PPC advertiser looking to further optimize your campaigns or a beginner just getting started with PPC advertising, PPC Shield is the ideal tool for putting you ahead of the competition.
So why wait? Sign up today and start experiencing the power of PPC Shield!
Price: Basic Plan starts at $39 per month; Standard Plan starts at $55 per month; Professional Plan starts at $119 per month
3. AppsFlyer
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AppsFlyer is a software company that provides attribution and analytics for mobile apps. AppsFlyer was founded in 2011 by Oren Kaniel and Erez Pilosof, and is headquartered in Herzliya, Israel. AppsFlyer provides an SDK that allows mobile app developers to track installs, in-app events, and other data.
In addition, AppsFlyer offers a number of features to help developers optimize their marketing campaigns, including ad fraud protection, audience segmentation, and retargeting. AppsFlyer also provides an enterprise-grade platform for marketers to measure the performance of their mobile marketing campaigns.
With over 10 billion app installs tracked, AppsFlyer is the leading mobile attribution and analytics platform.
Price: Free with paid plans starting at 6 cents per conversion
4. Singular
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Singular is a powerful tool for preventing fraud in online advertising. With features like click prevention for both iOS and Android, hyper-engagement detection, and geographic outliers, Singular helps keep your ad placements safe from harm.
Whether you are a large corporation or a small business, Singular has the unique combination of features and capabilities that you need to stay ahead of fraudulent activity. So if you’re looking to maintain the health of your online advertising campaigns and safeguard your hard-earned revenue, look no further than Singular.
With this cutting-edge all-in-one solution, you can rest assured that your placements are always protected from scammers and bad actors. So why wait? Sign up today and start putting Singular’s comprehensive fraud prevention tools to work for you!
Price: Free, with custom paid options available
5. ClickGUARD
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ClickGUARD is a tool that helps businesses to prevent Click Fraud. Click Fraud is when someone clicks on an online advertisement with the intention of causing harm to the business. This can be done manually, or through automated means.
ClickGUARD helps businesses to detect and prevent Click Fraud, by monitoring clicks and identifying patterns that may be indicative of fraud. In addition, ClickGUARD provides reports that give businesses insight into where Click Fraud is occurring, so that they can take steps to prevent it.
As a result, ClickGUARD is an essential tool for any business that relies on online advertising to reach its customers.
Price: ActiveGUARD plan starts at $79 per month; PremiumGUARD plan starts at $79 per month; EliteGUARD plan starts at $99 per month.
Click Fraud and PPC Advertising
Click fraud is a pervasive problem in the world of PPC advertising. It occurs when an entity, whether an individual or another business, clicks on your ads again and again in an attempt to drain your budget and waste your marketing res. While this can be a significant threat to your campaigns, it is not necessarily a reason to abandon paid ad efforts altogether.
By investing in tools and strategies that help to prevent click fraud, you can minimize its detrimental effects and make sure that your PPC marketing remains viable. This may involve seeking out services from professionals who have the knowledge and experience you need to protect yourself against malicious actors or educating yourself on best practices for preventing click fraud.
Regardless of what methods you choose, it will be worth the investment if it helps you achieve your marketing goals while maintaining its financial integrity. After all, no business wants to squander money on illegitimate clicks instead of funneling their spending towards more valuable leads. It is up to you as a marketer to take the necessary steps and take action against this persistent problem so that you can continue with confidence in your PPC efforts.