August 13, 2005 - (HOSTSEARCH.COM) - Web analytics firm, OPTIMAL iQ, announced the Click Fraud Vertical Market Research project today. This
eight-week study will focus on click fraud threat rating in five vertical markets along with the top ten search terms in each. The markets included in
the study are electronics, financial services, auto insurance, travel and retail. Companies spending for top search terms in the categories are
encouraged to participate in the study. Data will be processed utilizing the OPTIMAL iQ Click Forensics Rating Engine.
The Click Forensics Rating Engine is the hosted application developed specifically to acquire, process, report and monitor click fraud activity.
The proprietary algorithm utilizes twenty specific attributes to detect and segregate fraudulent activity. These attributes include both technical and
behavioral attributes.
"The behavioral information is collected from each
page of the site allowing us to immediately discount authentic clicks which convert," said Tom Cuthbert, Chief Operating Officer. "This process
identifies anonymous proxy servers and delivers reports which are as much as 65% more accurate than relying on technical attributes alone."
The research report, which will include a "best practices" white paper, is scheduled to be released publicly in October. "Our goal for the project is
two-fold," said Chuck Wall, OPTIMAL iQ President and CEO. "First, we will be able to help identify key indicators which will help advertisers detect
possible click fraud. More importantly, we hope to open up our process to the entire industry to mitigate the growing threat of click fraud."
Click Fraud Vertical Market Research project submission requirements and information are available at http://www.clickforensics.com .
