While the frequency may have reduced, you do sometimes come across misleading ads on Google search results pages or even on sites that are part of the Google AdSense program.
What surprises even more is the fact that advertisers are able to use Google’s own AdWords system to promote AdSense related products that are nothing but scams. See this recent screenshot of Google’s front page for a popular query like “AdSense.”
All the Google ads that you see in the above screenshot promise to offer you an “AdSense account” for some amount of money.
My conversation with an advertiser
Curious to know how this system works, I made a phone call to one of these advertisers and he suggested that I share my name, address and other details so that they can get an AdSense account for me. He stressed that he has contacts with people at Google and therefore its easy for him to get an account vis-à-vis me applying to Google directly.
He also promised me a readymade website – on topics ranging from cars to sports to bollywood – and I will be paid anywhere between 2¢ and $25 per click on that site. There’s more. He suggested that I share the URL with all my friends on Orkut and Facebook and ask them to click the ads for ‘quick money.’
I then called another advertiser and the story was no different. He went a step further and promised that my AdSense account will get approved within 24 hours of him receiving the payment (he even gave me his bank details).
I wonder why Google is letting this happen and that too through their own advertising network where they have complete control?
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