The search engine already credits advertisers that are overcharged through click fraud, whereby scam artists repeatedly click through on ads to deliberately bump up charges.
However, the case brought by Lane's Gifts and Collectibles in Arkansas State Court on behalf of all Google advertisers, claimed that the search engine was not doing enough to protect advertisers from such instances of fraud.
Google has since taken steps to improve security and introduced a new feature that gives advertisers a more detailed picture of their online Google ad accounts and any "invalid clicks" that have been detected.
The legal case comprised more than 70 objections and, under the terms of the settlement, Google will give advertising credits worth $4.50 for every $1,000 spent on advertising at its website.
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