ClickGuard provides multiple protection configuration approaches designed to suit different levels of automation, control, and account maturity. Understanding the differences between AI-Driven Mode, Custom Tuning, and Custom Rules helps advertisers build an effective and balanced invalid-traffic protection strategy.

1. AI-Driven Mode

AI-Driven Mode is a fully automated protection system that uses machine learning to detect and block suspicious or invalid clicks with minimal manual input.

This mode establishes a strong baseline protection by automatically and dynamically adapting to traffic quality and visitor behavior.

Key characteristics

• Automated detection and blocking

• Continuous learning from traffic patterns

• Dynamic threshold adjustments

• Minimal setup required

• Adaptive to changing fraud behaviors

Best suited for

• New accounts without historical data

• Advertisers seeking a “set-and-forget” solution

• Accounts with fluctuating traffic patterns

• Teams with limited technical resources

2. Custom Tuning

Custom Tuning allows advertisers to adjust the sensitivity and behavior of existing AI protection algorithms without creating new rule logic.

Custom Tuning enables performance optimization while preserving AI learning capabilities, where you can manually select on which problems should the system be more or less focused.

Key characteristics

• Sensitivity and aggressiveness adjustments

• Fine-tuning of detection thresholds

• Balances protection with legitimate traffic

Best suited for

• Accounts with sufficient historical data

• Situations where over-blocking or under-blocking is observed

• Stable campaigns requiring optimization

• Advertisers wanting more control without complex rule creation

3. Custom Rules

Custom Rules provide full manual control, allowing advertisers to define specific conditions for detecting and blocking suspicious activity.

Custom Rules offer precise control for addressing unique fraud patterns that automated systems may not fully capture.

Key characteristics

• User-defined blocking logic

• Granular targeting (IP frequency, location, device, behavior, etc.)

• Precise and highly customizable

• Requires monitoring and ongoing optimization

Best suited for

• Advanced users

• Accounts facing targeted click attacks

• Industry-specific fraud scenarios

• Geographic or compliance-driven restrictions

• High-budget campaigns requiring strict protection

ClickGuard offers three types of actions:

• Monitoring only — log all traffic and flag suspicious clicks without modifying your ad accounts targeting settings. No exclusions will be created.

• Disrupt attacks — Temporarily prevent fraudulent visitors from hurting your budget. Does not add any records to the blacklist.

• Block attackers and unwanted traffic — Fully optimize traffic by reducing both fraudulent actors and bad quality traffic from interacting with your ads. Create blacklist records for longer, more effective blocking.