Policies on SWiK

Defining invalid clicks and click fraud

Fri, 08 Aug 2008 13:05:46 -0700

We often receive questions from new publishers about what these two terms mean, and we'd like to help you understand the difference.

Invalid clicks are clicks for which we decide not to charge our AdWords advertisers, since they may artificially drive up advertiser cost or publisher revenue. These include extraneous clicks without any value to the advertiser, such as the second click of a double-click. They also include many other types of clicks that we've determined aren't motivated by genuine user interest.

"Invalid clicks" are often confused with "clicking on your own ads". However, we'd like to stress that invalid clicks are generally any clicks that artificially inflate advertiser cost or publisher revenue, regardless of their source.

Click fraud is a subset of invalid clicks that are generated with malicious or fraudulent intent -- in other words, clicks that are intended to drive up advertiser cost or publisher revenue artificially. Sources for these clicks include, but are not limited to:
A publisher clicking on his own ads, or encouraging clicks on his ads
Users or family members clicking to support the site / publisher
Third-party programs with user incentives, such as paid-to-click services and click-exchanges
Automated clicking tools, robots, or other deceptive software
The same principles above apply to ad impressions and conversions as well. Some sources of invalid impressions include, but are not limited to:
Excessive page refreshes, generated either manually or automatically
Third-party programs with user incentives, such as paid-to-surf or auto-surf programs
Third-party programs for purchasing fixed amounts of traffic, e.g. "$10 for 1,000 page views"

As a reminder, any method that artificially generates clicks, impressions, or conversions is strictly prohibited by our program policies. You can also find more information about these topics in our Invalid Clicks FAQ and our Ad Traffic Quality Resource Center.

Updated links to resources

Posted by the Google Ad Traffic Quality Team

Sharing your ad space

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 11:05:56 -0700

A number of publishers have asked us if it's acceptable to place multiple publishers' ad code on the same page or site. Often they'll run into this issue when two AdSense publishers manage a site together and both want to display their ads, or if a site owner hosts content and ads from other publishers on the same page as their own.

The answer is that yes, we do allow this. But before you place your ad code on the same page or site as another publisher, here are a few important points to keep in mind:

The maximum number of products per page will remain the same.
If you don't own the site, you'll need to receive permission from the site owner to display your ads on their pages.
We're unable to divide earnings between accounts, so any revenue generated will be credited to the account associated with the ad unit that was clicked or viewed.
Any shared site that displays Google ads must also comply with our program policies.
You're responsible for the content of any page where your ad code appears. Before placing your ad code on another publisher's site, we recommend reviewing the site for any policy violations.

And one final tip before giving your code to another publisher -- try using our Allowed Sites feature to monitor where your ads are appearing and keep your account in good standing.

Posted by Arlene Lee - AdSense Publisher Support

Web Accessibility - Michigan State University

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 11:51:24 -0700

Policies & guidelines for ensuring that MSU's websites meet accessibility standards.

Add or Remove Programs Restrictions at Registry Guide for Windows

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 05:17:35 -0700

NoSupportInfo

Commit Policies | Oliver Steele

Sat, 14 Jun 2008 01:16:28 -0700

git commit policies

Cool Solutions: Custom Start Menu Group Policy

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 02:16:22 -0700

Commit Policies | Oliver Steele

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 23:15:58 -0700

Policies that can be used for commits in distributed development using Git.

The Unofficial Samba HOWTO | Roaming Profiles

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 05:14:27 -0700

Implementing System Policies using SPE

Sat, 31 May 2008 17:42:22 -0700

Windows NT: Guide to Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 Profiles and Policies

Thu, 29 May 2008 08:18:10 -0700

Public policy and the new mobile marketplace

Tue, 20 May 2008 07:17:28 -0700

Custom Policy Templates for use with Samba

Tue, 20 May 2008 04:15:00 -0700

Implementing System Policies with Samba - SambaWiki

Fri, 16 May 2008 04:13:41 -0700

Implementing System Policies with Samba

Promoting your referrals -- properly

Thu, 17 Apr 2008 11:14:41 -0700

Some of our publishers have asked us about the policies surrounding promotion for referral units, and so we'd like to address two of the most frequent areas of confusion. While the policies are generally the same for referrals as for standard AdSense for content ad units, there are a few minor differences.

Recommending products vs. encouraging clicks

We previously addressed this topic, but we'd like to remind you of the policy and provide some additional clarification. You can endorse or recommend products you've chosen to refer on your sites, but we ask that you only make recommendations when you're familiar with the specific product and you've decided not to use the 'Pick best performing ads' feature for that ad unit. For example, if you're familiar with a specific travel agency you're referring, you may use language such as "I use this agency and recommend it to book your next vacation." By being honest with product recommendations, you can help build user loyalty and trust, which will benefit your site in the long run.

You may be wondering why we allow publishers to call attention to referral units but not standard ad units. This is because there are significant differences between these two types of ads, the most important being that advertisers only pay for traffic from referral units if the user performs a specific action the advertiser has designated (such as making a purchase from the site or signing up for a newsletter). Please keep in mind that there is a fine line between recommending a product and encouraging your users to click on a referral button for personal profit. Publishers may not ask users to click on the referrals to help them earn money, and may not refer themselves to their own referral products. In addition, publishers may not draw unnatural attention to their referral units with arrows pointing to the units or other similar methods.

Using online advertising

As is true for all sites displaying AdSense ad units, referral units, or search boxes, your site must comply with Google's Landing Page Quality Guidelines (LPQ) if you'd like to use online advertising of any kind as a traffic source. The term 'online advertising' refers to a range of methods, from advertising programs such as AdWords to posting your site within a link exchange or in a forum. However, if the primary purpose of your site is to generate conversions from referral ads, you'll need to go one step further before advertising your site. You'll need to first receive permission from the advertisers whose products you're referring before advertising your site or their products. Please note that Google has made the decision to not allow publishers to use online advertising for any of the Google products or those of our Google Pack partners.

Posted by Uladzimir Hrapelman - AdSense Publisher Support

Password policies for PBX servers

Wed, 02 Apr 2008 21:55:50 -0700

Password policies form an important part of computer security. Unfortunately a large number of VoIP PBX servers do not apply any policies when it comes to authentication. Because of the lack of such security mechanisms, bruteforce attacks are a viable way to attack PBX servers. Svcrack, which is part of the SIPVicious tool suite, demonstrates this.

Of course, vendors and developers should be cautious when implementing features that can cause a denial of service. For example, the Account Lockout policy (available in Microsoft's AD and other systems) allows anyone to deny service to another user. This is not such a good idea especially in the case of something as "real time" as the phone service.

On the other hand, trotting or slowing down authentication might be a solution to limit the chance of attackers guessing the password in a reasonable time. Password complexity should also be enforced to hinder brute-force and dictionary attacks.

Password policies for PBX servers

Wed, 02 Apr 2008 21:55:46 -0700

Another look at optimizations

Thu, 27 Mar 2008 13:46:55 -0700

We've given you many optimization tips over the years, and, as you know, it's important to consider how your ad implementations affect not only your click-through rate, but your users' and advertisers' experience as well. To support this, we'd like to remind you of the following two guidelines when optimizing your site.

1. Ads shouldn't be placed under a title or section heading in a way that implies that the ads are not ads.
For example, ads shouldn't be placed under titles such as “Dallas Business Opportunities” or “Today's Hot Deals”. Placing ads directly below titles such as these implies to your users that the links in the ads are publisher-created content. The example below shows a placement that does not follow this guideline.

2. Ads should be easily distinguishable from surrounding content.
Similarly, you should not place an ad unit by a group of links that has identical colors and line spacing. Doing so may cause users to think the ad unit is content created by you. In this situation, we recommend using a different color for the ad titles or indenting the ad unit to help distinguish the ads from your own content. This screenshot shows an implementation that does not follow this guideline:

As you can imagine, users who click on ads that they think are publisher-created content may lose trust in your site and decide not to return in the future. It's important to keep their interests in mind, as well as your own.

Also, advertisers can tell which sites have a high conversion rate for them using Placement Performance reports. A conversion occurs when a click on an ad leads directly to user behavior that the advertiser deems valuable, such as a purchase, sign-up, page view, or lead. Advertisers have the option to exclude your site from their campaigns and may do so if it is not leading to conversions.

We believe these guidelines invest in the long-term health of the relationship between AdSense publishers, AdWords advertisers, and your sites' visitors, and that they will help ensure your continued success in the AdSense program.

Posted by Meridith Major - AdSense Publisher Support

Security Policies - MozillaZine Knowledge Base

Tue, 22 Jan 2008 16:27:41 -0800

Engaging users with policy-compliant images and video

Thu, 17 Jan 2008 07:33:38 -0800

As it's becoming easier and easier to embed videos and pictures on websites, many publishers are now enhancing their current text content with relevant videos and photos. We wholeheartedly support adding these different forms of content to improve the user experience on your site -- hey, we like watching entertaining YouTube videos too! But here's a friendly reminder about keeping our program policies in mind when you choose video and image content for your site.

Before posting videos or pictures on a page with Google ads, put yourself in an advertiser's position and consider whether you would want to have your ad displayed on the page. If your content might potentially be seen as offensive or disturbing, an advertiser may not be comfortable running their ads on that page. Here are a few specific types of content that you can check for:

Adult or mature: Includes, but is not limited to, images and videos containing sexual activity, full nudity, and lewd poses. Please review this recent post to determine whether your content might fall into this category.
Violent or gory: Can include images and videos of street-fighting, people hurting each other, or gruesome accidents and their victims.
Culturally insensitive or hate speech: Includes content promoting racial intolerance or advocating against a specific individual, group, or organization.

Also, keep in mind that publishers may not place AdSense ads on pages involved in the unauthorized distribution of copyrighted materials. Unauthorized copyrighted materials include music, movies, images, or any other copyrighted material that the publisher does not own or license from the copyright owner.

The list above is by no means exhaustive, since there are always some borderline cases which will feature content that may be tame to one person but offensive to another. If you're uncertain about specific pictures or videos, we recommend that you err on the side of caution and refrain from placing this content on pages containing Google ads. In addition, if you host a site with user-generated content, we ask that you continually monitor your network to ensure that ads don't appear alongside the types of content described here.

Posted by Dan Zilic - AdSense Publisher Support

Custom Policy Templates for use with Samba

Tue, 15 Jan 2008 00:07:52 -0800

Samba Primary Domain Controller with Group Policies

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 00:20:05 -0800

Currently Samba does not implement Microsoft’s Active Directory Group Policy Objects, which is what allows you to control Windows Desktops from Active Directory. However, one of the first implementations of this functionality, Microsoft’s System Policy Editor, still works quite well with Samba. This page will show you how to use the System Policy Editor, along with updated, custom policies to allow you to control Windows XP Clients when using Samba as a Primary Domain Controller.

Name: Samba
HomePage: http://www.samba.org/
Function: Samba is a suite of programs that enables interoperability between Linux/Unix servers and Windows client

http://www.opensourcehowto.org/how-to/samba/samba-primary-domain-controller-with-group-policies.html

Wikipedia:Manual of Style - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Tue, 08 Jan 2008 11:39:05 -0800

Password policies for PBX servers

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 10:56:18 -0800

Password policies for PBX servers

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 10:56:04 -0800

Play it safe, family-safe

Mon, 26 Nov 2007 11:19:11 -0800

Many of our publishers regularly ask what is exactly considered adult or mature content by AdSense policies. It's a lot easier to understand when we speak about family-safe content. As you may already know, only ads classified as family-safe will be displayed on AdSense publisher websites.

Our policy regarding adult or mature content may include any material that is not appropriate for all audiences. While this obviously includes full nudity or sexual activity, it may also include textually explicit sexual content, image or video content containing lewd or provocative poses, strategically covered nudity, see-through or sheer clothing, and close-ups of anatomy that would be inappropriate if shown nude. Additionally, topics such as sexual health and sex tips may be held to a higher standard of professionalism than content that isn't bordering on mature.

While it's not a sure test, we sometimes suggest that publishers ask themselves the following questions to determine if content is family-safe: Would I be comfortable viewing this content with my parents or children in the same room? Would I feel comfortable viewing this content if my boss walked up behind me while I had this content on my screen? If the answer to either of these questions is no, then it is likely that some advertisers would not be comfortable showing their ads on such content and we might consider it mature.

Posted by Guillermo Bracciaforte - AdSense Publisher Support

Security Policies - MozillaZine Knowledge Base

Fri, 02 Nov 2007 22:21:49 -0700

Firms struggle with open source licences - vnunet.com

Mon, 15 Oct 2007 14:07:43 -0700

Podcasting | University of Illinois at Springfield

Mon, 15 Oct 2007 13:12:12 -0700

Implementing System Policies with Samba - SambaWiki

Mon, 15 Oct 2007 12:09:18 -0700

Policies are simply mandated registry settings for each machine and user on your network.

Windows Vista: Achieve the Non-Admin Dream with User Account Control -- TechNet Magazine, November 2006

Fri, 12 Oct 2007 14:06:01 -0700