TrafficGuard identifies Invalid traffic automatically using a number of different methods. Validation rules let you define custom conditions for identifying invalid traffic on your Google Ads campaigns. When a rule is met, the user is marked as invalid and TrafficGuard will attempt to exclude their IP from your campaigns (in Prevention mode).
ℹ️ Validation rules are a premium feature available under Threat settings on the ProtectPro plan. To upgrade your plan, follow the steps here.
Rule types
Click threshold rule - Invalidates users who click on your ads more than a set number of times within a chosen time period. This is the primary custom method for identifying repeat clickers and is the most commonly used validation rule.
Geographic - Invalidates clicks and excludes IPs based on the user's region, country, state, or city.
Public proxy - Invalidates clicks from known public proxy IP addresses.
TOR - Invalidates clicks from TOR network IP addresses.
VPN - Invalidates clicks from known VPN IP addresses.
Watch below for a brief overview of each rule type:
Default click threshold rules
When your Search account is created, TrafficGuard automatically sets up 3 click threshold rules as a starting point. These are based on commonly observed invalid click patterns and are designed to provide immediate protection.
You can view, edit, or adjust them at any time in Threat settings → Validation rules.
The 3 default rules are:
🔵 Account-level rule — More than 3 clicks across all campaigns within 2 hours. Once met, the user is excluded from all campaigns.
🔵 Campaign-level rule (all campaigns individually) — More than 1 click per campaign per day. The threshold must be met on each campaign separately for the user to be excluded from that campaign.
🔵 Campaign-level rule (selected campaigns individually) — More than 1 click per day on specific campaigns. The threshold must be met on each selected campaign separately.
ℹ️ You can have a maximum of 5 click threshold rules active at any time. When the limit is reached, the Create rule button is disabled and a message is displayed in the UI.
Geographic, Public proxy, TOR, and VPN rules are not subject to this limit — only one of each can exist per account.
Understanding the click threshold rules
Click threshold rules are the primary method of identifying users in the non-incremental threat category. Non-incremental users are genuine users who display repeated ad click activity that offers no incremental value for your ad spend — very likely existing customers who know your brand and use your ads as a shortcut to your site rather than searching organically.
Click threshold rules define limits on how many times a user can click on your ads within a defined time period before TrafficGuard categorises them as non-incremental and attempts to exclude them. These rules don't completely block users from seeing your ads — they limit clicks to a number that your data shows no longer offers value.
Each rule has two settings that work together:
Threshold and period — the number of clicks allowed within a set time period before the user is invalidated. For example: 3 clicks within 1 hour.
Applied to — controls which campaigns the rule covers and how clicks are counted:
🟢 All campaigns (cumulative) — clicks are counted across all campaigns in your account. Once the threshold is met across any combination of campaigns, the user is excluded from all campaigns. Only one cumulative rule can be active at a time.
🟢 Selected campaigns (individual) — clicks are counted and exclusions applied per campaign separately. A user must meet the threshold on a single campaign to be excluded from that campaign.
ℹ️ Before setting your thresholds, review your Click frequency report to understand your account's normal click patterns. This helps you set thresholds that catch genuine fraud without affecting legitimate users.
How to access validation rules
In the TrafficGuard dashboard, navigate to your Search account and select Threat settings → Validation rules from the navigation menu.
Add a new validation rule
In Threat settings → Validation rules, click Add new.
Select the rule type from the dropdown.
Fill in the required fields for your chosen rule type.
Review the rule summary — this shows a plain-language description of what the rule will do.
Make sure the Is enabled toggle is on, then click Save.
Edit or delete a rule
In Threat settings → Validation rules, click the rule you want to change.
Update the settings as needed, then click Save. To delete the rule, use the delete option in the top right of the edit panel.
Temporarily disable a rule
To pause a rule without deleting it, open the rule and turn off the Is enabled toggle.
⚠️Changes to validation rules only affect data going forward. Existing data is not retroactively updated when a rule is modified.