Google Agrees to Pay Advertisers Over Click Fraud

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — Google will pay up to $90 million to settle a lawsuit alleging it overcharged thousands of advertisers who paid for bogus sales referrals generated through click fraud.

Any website, adult or mainstream, showing fraudulent clicks dating back to 2002 will be eligible for credit that could be used toward future Google advertising.

While Google decided to settle with businesses, others have not. The class-action lawsuit filed by Arkansas-based Lane's Gifts and Collectibles and Caulfield Investigations targeted Yahoo, as well as Time Warner and its America Online and Netscape units.

The suit alleged that the companies had conspired with its advertising partners to conceal the magnitude of click fraud to avoid making refunds.

Through the years, Google has remained consistent with its statement that click fraud is minuscule. Court documents appear to support that. The $90 million translates into less than 1 percent of Google's $11.2 billion in revenue since 2002.

In its court filing, Lane’s Gifts said Google and other plaintiffs collected fees for pay-for-click advertising, which were not actually generated by consumers clicking on the search engine sites to get to Lane's Gifts.

Google said it will allow advertisers to apply for reimbursement for clicks they believe are invalid.

Google has posted details about the proposed settlement here.

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

Texas Resumes AV Lawsuit Against Aylo Following SCOTUS Decision

A district court judge in Texas has unfrozen the state’s $1.6 million lawsuit against Aylo for allegedly failing to comply with age verification requirements, Bloomberg Law is reporting.

JuicyAds Wins Trademark Infringement Case Against Fraudulent Domain

JuicyAds has won its World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) case against a website using a similar domain to impersonate the company's site and defraud customers.

Anissa Kate, Jordan Starr Top AEBN for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top-selling stars for the second quarter of 2025, with Anissa Kate landing atop the leaderboard for straight theaters and Jordan Starr heading up the gay rankings.

AEBN Reveals Eva Maxim as Top Trans Star for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top trans stars list for the second quarter of 2025, with Eva Maxim landing atop the leaderboard.

France Reinstates Age Verification Rule for EU Sites

France’s highest court, the Council of State, on Tuesday reinstated age verification rules for EU-based sites under the country’s Security and Regulation of the Digital Space (SREN) law, ruling in favor of the French government and against Hammy Media.

Whisper Fans Joins Pineapple Support as Supporter-Level Sponsor

Whisper Fans has joined the ranks of over 70 adult businesses and organizations committing funds and resources to Pineapple Support.

Utherverse Launches 'Red Light Center' Virtual World

Virtual reality and metaverse technology company Utherverse has launched its new virtual world, RedLightCenter.io.

European Commission Approves AV Guidelines, Unveils Prototype App

The European Commission on Monday released its final, approved guidelines for protecting minors online under the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) and made public a “white label” age verification app intended to help sites and platforms comply with age verification rules under the DSA.

Show More