Over on Cnet there is an article up about Google Settlement of the Click Fraud case, and how it is not a fix for the problem, only a temporary band-aid.

Unfortunately, there’s no easy answer. Some experts say the solution is to have an independent auditor that would use data from the search engines and advertisers to determine in a neutral environment whether clicks are fraudulent.

Google and Yahoo, however, appear reluctant to embrace that idea. Google, which makes 99 percent of its revenue off ads on search results and partner publisher sites, says it doesn’t want to give up data that rivals could use to improve their business. “Detecting invalid clicks accurately is a competitive advantage and differentiator, and as such, we compete with Yahoo and others to provide the best detection possible,” said Shuman Ghosemajumder, business product manager for trust and safety at Google.