WARNING: Five Million Fake Adverts

A couple of days ago, over at our sister site PC Pro, I asked if you can trust Google sponsored results. My inbox would seem to suggest that many people share my concern when it comes to clicking on those paid for search result placings, although a number of outraged online citizens expressed their anger that I should dare suggest that advertising can ever be a bad thing. I find this latter concept totally alien, having witnessed all sorts of misleading adverts during the last four decades. Whether it is the sign on the side of the plumbing van falsely claiming membership of a professional organisation or a scammer trying to entice you to purchase rogue antivirus software via pop-ups on your computer screen. They both hope you will comply because they are taking advantage of the trust phenomenon.