TrafficGuard flags up to 34% invalid clicks on ChatGPT ads, proxy networks blamed
· 3h ago · Originally reported by PPC Land
Ad-fraud vendor TrafficGuard detected invalid click rates as high as 34% on certain ChatGPT advertising campaigns. Four hosting and proxy networks were responsible for 47% of the flagged clicks, reaching 25 of 47 advertisers audited. The findings leave open how much advertisers were actually billed for the suspect traffic.
Why it matters
As ChatGPT grows into a search and ad platform, high IVT rates erode advertiser trust and inflate costs—directly squeezing arbitrage operators who buy clicks from any paid source and need clean, billable traffic to stay profitable.
Explain it like I’m new here
It's like paying for a busload of real customers but finding a third of them are mannequins—someone still charged you full price for the seats.
Terms in this story
Click
A click is one person tapping or clicking on an ad or link and being taken to another page.
Advertiser
An advertiser is the business that pays for an ad in the hope of winning a customer, a lead or a sale.
Invalid click
An invalid click is a click on an ad that does not reflect genuine interest in the advertiser, so the advertiser should not be charged for it.
Campaign
A campaign is one organised advertising effort on a platform, with its own budget, targeting, bids and set of ads.
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