Don’t accept Google Ads Click Fraud as ‘just another business cost’

With 86.64% of the internet search market share, Google is unquestionably the dominant digital marketplace of the 21st century. But that doesn’t mean you should learn to live with Google Ads click fraud. It doesn’t have to be like that.

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What is Google Ads click fraud?

Approximately 17% of Google Ads traffic is thought to be click fraud. Cybercriminals abuse the Google Ads PPC model by deliberately clicking on adverts for products and services with no intention to buy – wiping out the advertiser’s budget as a result.

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There’s more than just click fraud to worry about

There are plenty of other drawbacks to Google Ads, too. Invalid traffic – any click that occurs without a genuine interest – can include:

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accidental clicks
returning customers looking for other information
other kinds of ad fraud, like worthless fake websites that only exist to generate revenue for their publishers by sneakily driving traffic with no desire to visit or buy.

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Why can’t Google stop click fraud?

Google claims its invalid traffic filters eliminate most of the drain on your ad budget from fraudulent clicks. It also claims to reimburse victims of click fraud.

In practice, ad fraud compensation from Google involves a lengthy and complicated process that results in partial reimbursement for a small minority of complainants.

And Google’s own estimates of invalid traffic don’t match up with the results of several independent studies. It simply isn’t catching as much invalid traffic as it claims.

Industry experts speculate that Google and the other tech giants lack the motivation to fully restrict this fraudulent behavior because they still make money from every click – whether it’s fraud or not.

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What does click fraud look like on the different types of Google Ads?

There’s so many different ways to advertise on Google now, it can be hard to keep up. Unless you’re a cybercriminal (or the leading click fraud protection solution – Bearkd).

Each type of Google Ad carries its own risks and vulnerabilities, but generally, search-based ads are vulnerable to click fraud from malicious competitors, bots, botnets, and bot farms.

Ads that use the Google Display Network are equally vulnerable to the risk of click fraud. But they’re also exposed to the wider risks of ad fraud from illegitimate websites on the network, using a whole array of techniques such as domain spoofing, click injections, and redirect attacks.