Click-fraud detection method

• US 20080162475A1
• Filed: 01/03/2007
• Published: 07/03/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 01/03/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Mycronomics LLC
• Original Assignee: Mycronomics LLC
• Inventors: Meggs, Anthony F., Gillespie, Jim
• Application Number:
  US11/648,576
• Publication Number:
  US 20080162475A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/6
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising

Abstract

A method for determining whether clicks on results in a search are fraudulent is provided. The method includes monitoring a pattern of clicks on links presented to a user as a result of a search request by the user; and conducting additional analysis of the links clicked on by the user if the monitored pattern of clicks falls within pre-determined parameters. A second method of detecting click fraud is also provided. The method includes: monitoring links clicked on by a user; adjusting search results presented to a user in response to a user'"'"'s search when the user clicks on links associated with the search results in a pattern that fall within pre-determined parameters.

Claims

1. A method of detecting click fraud comprising:

monitoring links clicked on by a user;

adjusting search results presented to a user in response to a user'"'"'s search when the user clicks on links associated with the search results in a pattern that fall within pre-determined parameters.

2. The method of claim 1, further including analyzing links clicked on by the user when presented with the adjusted search results.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the analyzing links clicked on by the user includes comparing links clicked on presented in a first set of search results and links clicked presented in a set of second search results.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the analyzing links clicked on by the user includes determining a click bias.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the analyzing links clicked on by the user includes determining a search burst relevancy bias.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising taking action with respect to a user'"'"'s account if clicks associated with the users account are determined to be fraudulent.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein monitoring the links clicked on by a user includes:

detecting a search burst;

monitoring search relevancy of searches in the search burst;

monitoring click coverage ratio of search results;

monitoring click rate of search results;

analyzing the search relevancy of searches in the search burst, the click coverage of search results, and the click rate of search results; and

determining whether the user clicks on links associated with the search results in patterns that fall within the pre-determined parameters.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising assigning a relevance coefficient to the searches in the search burst.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein relevance coefficient is determined by using the formula:

$\frac{\mathrm{matched}<br><br>\text{-}<br><br>\mathrm{search\_ratio}-\frac{1}{\mathrm{searches}}}{1<br><br>\text{-}<br><br>\mathrm{multi}<br><br>\text{-}<br><br>\mathrm{match\_ratio}}.$

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the user clicks on links associated with the search results in a pattern that fall with pre-determined parameters if any one of the following three conditions occur:

(a) the click coverage ratio is over about 50% and the relevancy coefficient is less than about 0.75;

(b) the click coverage is between about 50% and 100% and the relevancy coefficient is between about 0.75 and 1.25; and

(c) the click coverage ratio is over about 50% and the relevancy coefficient is less than about 0.25 and the click rate is less than about 3 clicks per minute.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising not adjusting search results presented to the user because the user clicks on links associated with the search results in a pattern that does not fall with pre-determined parameters when any one of the following three conditions occur:

(a) the click coverage ratio is below 100%, the click rate is between about 3 and 10 clicks per minute, and the relevancy coefficient is at or above 1.25;

(b) the click coverage ratio is below 100%, the click rate is at or below 3 clicks per minute, and the relevancy coefficient is at or above about 1.00; and

(c) the click coverage ratio is below 100%, the click rate is at or below 3 clicks per minute, and the relevancy coefficient is at or above about 0.75.

12. The method of claim 7, further comprising not adjusting the search results presented to the user because the user clicks on links associated with the search results in a pattern that does not fall with pre-determined parameters when the click coverage ratio is less than about 50%.

13. The method of claim 7, wherein the user clicks on links associated with the search results in a pattern that falls with pre-determined parameters if the click rate achieves and one of the three following conditions:

(a) the click rate is about 15 clicks per minute;

(b) the click rate is about 8 click per minute for at least about 30 minutes; and

(c) the click rate exceeds about 500 clicks per day.

14. The method of claim 7, wherein the user clicks on links associated with the search results in a pattern that falls within pre-determined parameters if the click coverage ratio approaches 100%.

15. The method of claim 2, wherein analyzing the user'"'"'s clicks with respect to the altered search results includes monitoring steps are done over a length of time with several different search bursts and determining that the clicks are fraudulent if they are part of a second pattern of click behavior.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the user clicks on links associated with the search results in patterns that fall within the second pattern of click behavior if the search relevancy declines over time.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the user clicks on links associated with the search results in patterns that fall within the second pattern of click behavior if the click coverage and the click rate increase over time and the search relevancy declines over time.

18. The method of claim 1, further comprising adjusting internet advertising fees based on the characterized clicks.

19. The method of claim 1, wherein a user making the clicks elects to be monitored.

20. The method of claim 1, further comprising taking action against a user of the system if it is detected that the user is generating fraudulent clicks.

21. The method of claim 1, wherein the adjusting the search results step includes one of the following steps:

(a) stopping the presentation of search results;

(b) reducing the number of search results presented; and

(c) eliminating the presentation of particular types of search results presented.

22. A method of detecting click fraud behavior comprising:

monitoring a pattern of clicks on links presented to a user as a result of a search request by the user;

adjusting the search results presented to the user in future search requests when past search requests from that user result in the user forming a pattern of clicking on links presented in the past search results according to predetermined parameters; and

conducting additional analysis of the links clicked on by the user in the adjusted search results and based on the additional analysis doing one of the following two steps;

resuming the presentation of search results to the user to a pre-adjusted level; and

stopping the presentation of search results to the user.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the monitoring step includes monitoring sentinel metrics.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the conditioning additional analysis includes performing a historical analysis on the click pattern.

25. The method of claim 24, further comprising performing a dynamic fraud analysis if the historical analysis is indeterminate.

26. A method of detecting click fraud behavior comprising:

monitoring a pattern of clicks on links presented to a user as a result of a search request by the user; and

conducting additional analysis of the links clicked on by the user if the monitored pattern of clicks falls within pre-determined parameters.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the monitoring step includes monitoring sentinel metrics.

28. The method of claim 26, wherein the conditioning additional analysis includes performing a historical analysis on the click pattern.

29. The method of claim 26, further comprising performing a dynamic fraud analysis if the historical analysis is indeterminate.