• by Shankar Gupta , February 27, 2006

Web analytics firm ClickTracks today is expected to unveil a new version of its software, which for the first time will include a tool that detects possible click fraud.

The tool, which is free, detects potential click fraud by analyzing a Web site's server logs and looking for anomalous traffic.

Michael Stebbins, vice president of marketing for ClickTracks, said the feature works by analyzing all of a user's keyword campaigns and then looking for unusual patterns in referral sources, visitor IPs, conversion rates, and length-of-visits.

For example, if a particular keyword has an unusually high number of clicks from similar IP addresses, but low conversions and short visits, and an affiliate is referring those clicks, it's possible that the affiliate is recording fraudulent clicks on the user's campaign.

Stebbins added that not all keywords kicked up by the tool are being targeted by fraud--some may simply be poorly performing campaigns that need revision.

Moreover, Stebbins said, because their analytics product uses server logs, and not tracking via JavaScript--which many analytics tools use instead--the click fraud tool can check older server logs, before the ClickTracks product was purchased, and examine them for past fraud, and possible refunds.

Laura Thieme, president of Bizresearch, said that ClickTrack's inclusion of an anti-click fraud tool in its analytics suite is unusual, because most click-fraud tools are stand-alone. "[Click fraud] is so new--the fact that ClickTracks has come out with something so new that works with the Web analytics tool is a differentiator right there," she said. "If you look at Web analytics solutions as a comprehensive solution, very few of them give you any indication of Click Fraud, and those that do don't give you this kind of detail."

Stebbins said that ClickTracks is planning to release the click fraud tool in the first week of March to select clients, and then to all its clients in mid or late March.