Click Fraud

From What's new, new media?

In online advertising, click fraud involves sending fraudulent clicks to Cost-per-Click (CPC) advertisers. The clicks can be artificially generated via automated technology methods (such as hitbots) or via manual clicking for the purpose of debiting CPC advertiser accounts or increasing CPC network partner/affiliate commission revenues.

Click fraud occurs in pay per click online advertising when a person, automated script or computer program imitates a legitimate user of a web browser clicking on an ad, for the purpose of generating an improper charge per click.