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PPV (adware): Web surfer enters keywords (8)


05-31-2012 08:42 AM #1 Loffy (Member)
PPV (adware): Web surfer enters keywords

Hello!

Reading and learning about PPV (adware). It seems the ads (popup/-under) are shown to the web surfer when he or she enters certain keywords. Exactly where are those keywords entered by the web surfer?

The adware reads all keystrokes, I guess, at all time, regardless of what site the web surfer is looking at. When he or she is in Google Search, and enters a predetermined keyword, the ad will show?


05-31-2012 08:53 AM #2 zeno (Administrator)

That's not how PPV works - and that's not adware - something recording all keystrokes is certainly malware and incredibly malicious, i.e. trojan-like. Wouldn't it also be recording keystrokes when you enter passwords, log in to your internet banking etc?

The keywords you're thinking of are in the URL of the page they visit. You bid on URL/domain keywords, e.g. if you bid on 'baseball' then your ads can pop up whenever the user is at some site with *baseball* anywhere in the URL/domain name.


05-31-2012 02:40 PM #3 Loffy (Member)

Ah, the words are in the domain name! Silly me. Thanks zeno.


06-14-2012 06:30 PM #4 Loffy (Member)

Found some PPV adware related info over at leadimpact.com

Our software monitors the searching and browsing activity of a consumer’s online session. For example, if an advertiser is targeting consumers searching for "shoes" and one of our users is searching for "dress shoes", our software will make a contextual match and deliver that advertiser's ad at that point.
It seems to be when the user searches, e.g. in Google. (And/or when target is in URL.) Not sure though.


06-14-2012 10:29 PM #5 zeno (Administrator)

I imagine they contextually target based on keywords in the various search engine URLs, again not based on the text entered by the user as that constitutes keylogging. Basically like third-party adwords.


06-15-2012 06:27 AM #6 Loffy (Member)

Mechanically it is a process of entering the targets into a search form, but technically the adware only reads, digest, and use the information that is in the search engines URLs, I see. Thanks!

It is not absolutely essential that you know everything that goes on behind the scenes, I guess, but knowing as much as possible is my goal. I mean, it has an effect on how I tailor my targets, right?


06-15-2012 07:51 AM #7 zeno (Administrator)

Yeapo, you got it. Knowing how traffic sources work is key to sorting out the nitty gritty details. For instance instead of targeting x keyword you could target the URL that someone would get when they searched for that keyword in Google - e.g. http://www.google.co.nz/search?q=keyword so you could target '/search?q=keyword' and various things like that, use those imploder tools and such to generate all the various truncations etc so that you can bid on strings/keywords that have less competition. Also means you can more readily understand where your traffic is coming from!


06-15-2012 09:19 AM #8 Loffy (Member)

Suggestions like that are by themselves enuff to validate the monthly fee for this awesome forum. Many thanks!

Stack on!


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