Click fraud is a deceptive practice where individuals or automated systems artificially inflate the number of clicks on online advertisements. This can occur when competitors or malicious actors repeatedly click on ads to exhaust a company's advertising budget without any genuine interest in the product or service being promoted. Advertisers often pay for each click on their ads, making click fraud a significant concern. It can lead to wasted marketing resources and skewed analytics, ultimately affecting a business's ability to reach its target audience effectively. Various tools and strategies are employed to detect and prevent this fraudulent activity.