Click fraud is down somewhat, according to the latest Click Fraud Index from Click Forensics. Content networks still give me the shivers; there’s no way I’m ever showing ads on them:

The average click fraud rate of pay-per-click (PPC) advertisements appearing on search engine content networks, including Google AdSense and the Yahoo Publisher Network, was 27.8 percent. That’s down from the 28.3 percent rate reported for Q4 2007 and up from the 21.9 percent average click fraud rate reported for Q1 2007.

That’s just too high. But then again it helps the report publisher’s business to sound these alarm bells. The louder and scarier, the better. PPC is here to stay and it still is my paid channel weapon of choice, next to email. Businesses will just have to live with the fact that click fraud is part of doing business online.