clickbait

Content whose main purpose is to attract attention and encourage visitors to click on a link. Clickbait is usually a text or thumbnail link designed to entice users to follow that link and read, view, or listen to the linked piece of online content.

Historical perspective: The term "clickbait" was added to Merriam-Webster's dictionary in 2015.

Ever gotten tricked into clicking a fake Play button on Facebook that opens a link instead of starting a video? asked TechCrunch.com in 2017. The social network is cracking down on such posts as part of its ongoing campaign against "clickbait" including fake Play buttons and videos that are actually static images uploaded as a video file. Spammers have been trying to take advantage of Facebook’s increased emphasis on video by tricking people into clicking on their content. But the company says that publishers using these tactics will now see a major decrease in the distribution of these stories. However, Facebook won’t delete such posts entirely unless they violate other policies.