Report: Click Fraud Reaches 15.8% In Q2 2007


The Click Fraud Network released (press release) figures for the second quarter of this year, showing click fraud has increase to 15.8% from 14.8% in the previous quarter or 14.1% from Q2 2006.

One of the reasons for the increase, according to The Click Fraud Network, is a noticeable increase in botnets, parked domain sites and made-for-AdSense sites. The data comes from 4,000 online advertisers and agencies.

Here are the key findings:

  • The overall industry average click fraud rate was 15.8 percent for Q2 2007. This is an increase from 14.1 percent for the same quarter in 2006 and 14.8 percent for Q1 2007.
  • The average click fraud rate of PPC advertisements appearing on search engine content networks, including Google AdSense and the Yahoo Publisher Network, was 25.6 percent. That’s up from 21.9 percent for Q1 2007 and 19.2 percent for Q4 of 2006.
  • Traffic from botnets doubled from Q1 to Q2 2007 and contributed significantly to the increase in click fraud rates.
  • In Q2 2007, the greatest percentage of click fraud originating from countries outside North America came from France (5.1 percent), China (3.2 percent) and Australia (3 percent).

The Click Fraud Network also published an interesting heat map showing the threat of click fraud by geographic area.

Click Fraud Network Heat Map

Keep in mind, Google and Yahoo have their own figures for click fraud and they do not match up with these numbers because of different measuring methodologies and also because discounted clicks aren’t measured by the CFN. See our click fraud category for more about this, in the stories listed there.



Barry Schwartz is Search Engine Land's News Editor and owns RustyBrick, a NY based web consulting firm. He also runs Search Engine Roundtable, a popular search blog on very advanced SEM topics. Barry's personal blog is named Cartoon Barry and he can be followed on Twitter here.

See more articles by Barry Schwartz >


Share, Bookmark & Discuss This Article
More:


Keep Updated: News Via Email | News Via RSS Feed | News Via Twitter


See more stories like this in the Members Library! Check out the Legal: Clickfraud sections of the Members Library where this story is filed. Members also get access to exclusive video content, a members-only weekly & monthly newsletter, plus more. Check out all the benefits!

Comments are closed.


RECENT COMMNENTS

  • nickstamoulis said " Wow, this is very interesting, I was not aware of the the Google Books case at all, I will be sure t"
  • nickstamoulis said " These are all very cool, my personal favorite 4th logo is the Ask.com layout, it is very creative!"
  • realtrack303 said " Hi Danny, Fantastic information by you which showing superb logos of google, yahoo, ask , dogpile an"

See All »


FREE DAILY SEARCH NEWS RECAP!

Stay on top of all the search news with our daily summary, the SearchCap newsletter. View a sample ›

STAY CURRENT THROUGHOUT THE DAY

RSS Feeds

The Search Engine Land feed keeps you informed as news happens. SEE ALL FEEDS »

Upcoming Search Engine Land Conferences

Advertise With Us »

Search Engine Land produces SMX, the Search Marketing Expo conference series. SMX events deliver the most comprehensive educational and networking experiences - whether you're just starting in search marketing or you're a seasoned expert.


SMX Web Site » | SMX Difference » | SMX News »


Join us at an upcoming SMX event:

Search Marketing Now Learn more about search marketing with our free online webcasts and webinars from our sister site, Search Marketing Now. Upcoming online events include:


See more webcast topics »

TRACK US SOCIALLY
Upcoming Search Engine Land Conferences

Get Your Search Engine Land
Premium Membership!

Become a premium member today and receive:

  • Express commenting privileges & photo.
  • Exclusive videos & newsletters.
  • Discounts to our SMX conferences.
  • Access to "How To" & Other Archives.

Learn More

Upcoming Search Engine Land Conferences
Add to GoogleAdd to My Yahoo!Add to BloglinesAdd to NetvibesAdd to Windows Live