Email from Google - anything I can do about this?

Doesn't seem like there's anything I can do

[limitup]

I've never messed with AdSense before, but just for kicks we recently added some AdSense ads to one of our high traffic sites. Today we get this from Google:

"It has come to our attention that invalid clicks or impressions have been generated on the Google ads on your site(s) through users of third-party programs paid or provided with other incentives to visit your site. Such programs include, but are not limited to auto-surf, pay-to-surf, pay-to-read, or pay-to-click sites."

I have no clue what their problem is, but there's obviously nothing I can do about this. They say if it keeps happening they will disable our account. Doh. Should I just take the AdSense off and run something else?

[incrediBILL]

Should I just take the AdSense off and run something else?

I'm not sure I understand the question, do you mean you want to pick something else that doesn't seem to mind click fraud?

[limitup]

Users visiting our sites have no incentive to click our ads fraudulently, and they aren't accusing us of click fraud (we've never clicked our own links) so I don't see what click fraud has to do with anything.

Google's email seems to be concerned with "users of third-party programs paid or provided with other incentives to visit your site" but I don't really know what they are talking about.

What am I missing here? Where's the "click fraud"?

[timwestla]

"Click fraud" is a very broad term that means getting clicks outside of accepted means. For example, if people are visiting your site as part of an incentive to get a free iPod, and end up clicking your ads, that is click fraud... even if you don't encourage them to click the ads. The point is that the traffic is not natural.

[jomaxx]

just for kicks we recently added some AdSense ads to one of our high traffic sites

Huh? You have a high traffic website and have never used AdSense? You added it "just for kicks"? I can't help but feel there's relevant information we haven't heard yet.

Anyway I'd remove AdSense temporarily, and then email Google back. Explain the site and the business model, and ask for explicit approval for running AdSense on it.

[incrediBILL]

What am I missing here? Where's the "click fraud"?

Are you running ad campaigns to drive traffic for arbitrage?

Do you have some cheap PPC traffic coming from some bottom of the barrel service?

Does your site say anything even resembling "Advertisers keep our site running."?

If you don't have any ad campaigns running, don't have any shady links to drive traffic, not questionable statements about ads on your site and feel you're completely harmless here, I would write back to Google and explain that you don't have anything like that and are unaware of what they are talking about.

Ask them to explain and provide specifics so you can deal with the situation.

[jomaxx]

P.S. Just took a look at your profile and it seems your site traffic comes wholly from ad campaigns. As incrediBill says, you could be buying cheapo traffic that comes via adware/spyware or from some other disreputable source.