Google may have hedged its risk a bit by setting-up a $90 million dollar credit following a recent class-action settlement with its advertisers, who complained they had been unfairly charged for
advertising that was hijacked by competitors. Following the settlement, experts say click fraud won't be going away anytime soon. In click fraud, ads are repeatedly clicked on by automated software
bots deployed by competitors seeking to drive up the advertiser's costs. Google advertisers who believe they are victims of click fraud can apply to receive a portion of the $90 million credit the
company has set up as part of its settlement. The credit can only be applied to future keyword purchases. Search guru Danny Sullivan, the editor of SearchEngineWatch.com, says that by agreeing to
settle for $90 million, Google is effectively saying that "click fraud is only 1 percent of sales." Of course, we've heard much higher estimates; many don't believe $90 million is adequate. Search
marketers interviewed by Forbes.com say the figure is more like 10 percent.
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