CHICAGO, June 15 (UPI) -- An auto repair shop owner buys some online ads and thinks he snagged a bargain by negotiating a deal with the advertising agency to pay only when Web surfers click on the banners. It sounds like a good deal, until the owner receives the bill: His $1 per click deal turns into a $1 million invoice, and he has no idea how many of the clicks came from legitimate prospects.

Welcome to the world of Internet click fraud -- crimes emerging from an increasingly popular practice of pricing online ads. By Gene Koprowski