The 2024 Imperva Bad Bot Report shows that 49.6% of internet traffic in 2023 came from bots. This is a 2% increase from the year before. It’s the highest level since Imperva started tracking automated traffic in 2013¹. This traffic is costing businesses billions of dollars each year because of attacks on websites, APIs, and apps².

The report also found that “bad bots” made up 32% of web traffic in 2023. This is up from 30.2% in 2022. Meanwhile, traffic from humans dropped to 50.4%²¹. The increase in bot traffic is a big threat to businesses and people. It creates many challenges that need to be solved.

Internet Bot Traffic Stats: Nearly half of all internet traffic globally comes from bots. This is a staggering statistic that shows how automated software agents are taking over the web. It has big implications for online businesses, individuals, and organizations. They must ensure their websites, networks, and applications stay secure and efficient.

Bot-Driven Web Traffic: The rise of bot-driven web traffic has changed how we use online services. From social media to e-commerce sites, bots are flooding in. This can affect website performance, security, and user experience. It’s key for organizations to understand and manage this traffic to protect against cyber threats and deliver better user experiences.

How Bots Affect the Internet: Bots have a big impact on the internet, affecting search engine rankings and network security. They can flood websites and networks, compromising sensitive information and disrupting services. The volume of bot traffic also raises concerns about data quality and authenticity, making strong cybersecurity and analytics solutions essential.

Internet Traffic Issues 2024: Looking ahead to 2024, internet traffic issues will still be a big concern. With more bots, social media manipulation, and cyber threats, keeping online security, performance, and user experience will be a challenge. By staying up-to-date with trends and technologies, we can overcome these challenges and make the digital world safer and more efficient for all.

As more internet traffic comes from bots, it’s crucial for companies and people to understand the issue. They need to take steps to reduce the risks. Malicious automated traffic, like account takeover attacks and API vulnerabilities, is a big concern. It needs a strategic approach to online security and managing traffic²³.

The Rise of Bot-Driven Web Traffic

The internet has changed a lot with the rise of bot traffic. It now makes up almost half of all online activity. Reports show that a huge⁴ 73% of internet traffic in Q3 2023 was from bad bots and fraud farms².

Bad bots now make up 32% of all internet traffic, up from 30.2% in 2022. This shows a big increase in automated threats.

These bots are not just annoying; they are a big problem for businesses in many fields⁴. They cause billions of dollars in losses each year. Industries like tech, gaming, social media, e-commerce, and finance are hit the hardest, with bad bots making up to 76% of their traffic.

⁴ Bots are getting smarter, using machine learning and AI. This has led to a big jump in intelligent bot traffic, almost quadrupling from Q1 to Q2⁴. Crime-as-a-service (CaaS) has also made it easier for cybercriminals to launch these attacks, making the problem worse.

² In the U.S., bad bot traffic rose to 35.4% in 2023. Ireland, Germany, and Mexico saw even higher levels, at 71%, 67.5%, and 42.8%, respectively². Simple bot traffic, driven by generative AI and large language models, also grew to 39.6% in 2023, up from 33.4% the year before.

² Bot traffic has had a big impact on businesses. 44% of all account takeover attacks targeted API endpoints in 2023, up from 35% in 2022². Also, 11% of all login attempts across the internet were linked to account takeover in 2023.

⁵ Bot traffic now makes up 42.3% of all internet activity, with good bots like search engine crawlers making up some of this⁵. However, the rise of malicious bad bots is a big concern. They steal personal info, spread malware, hijack accounts, and perform DDoS attacks.

⁵ It’s important to identify and manage bot traffic. It can harm businesses, affect SEO rankings, and impact website revenue. Setting up a robots.txt file, using IP-based solutions, and leveraging web application firewalls can help fight bad bots.

As the internet gets more automated, dealing with bot traffic will get harder. Businesses need to be careful and use strong strategies to protect their online presence and customer data from malicious bots.

What Are Bad Bots?

The internet is full of traffic, with almost half coming from bots⁶. These bots can do things fast and in big numbers, like humans but better⁶. But, “bad bots” are different. They cause trouble.

Bad bots are programs that do bad things online. They scrape websites, take over accounts, spam, and even crash sites⁶. They hurt businesses by messing with their decisions and making sites slow. This can also hurt their ranking on search engines, making it harder to compete⁶.

Bad bots also make websites slow and cost more to run. They make it harder for users to have a good experience.

• Malicious bot attacks, such as credential stuffing, carding, account takeovers, scalping, and web scraping, can lead to financial losses, damage to brand reputation, and consumer trust erosion⁶.
• Bot attacks can drive up chargebacks, credit processing fees, infrastructure costs, and necessitate more resources from engineering, security, and customer service teams⁶.
• Bot attacks can also lead to potential lawsuits, regulatory fines, and negative impacts on long-term revenue, stock value, and business growth⁶.

To fight bad bots, we need to watch for them, make them prove they’re human, slow down their bad actions, and block them⁶. The Human Defense Platform helps businesses fight bad bots well⁶.

Global Bad Bot Traffic Reached 32%

Recent data shows a worrying trend in online traffic. Almost half of all internet use is now from bots⁷. The 2024 Imperva Bad Bot Report found that bad bot traffic worldwide hit 32% in 2023. This is a big jump from past years⁷.

Highest Levels in Ireland, Germany, and Mexico

Some countries are feeling the brunt of this bot traffic more than others. Ireland leads with 71% of its web traffic from bad bots⁸. Germany is close behind with 67.5%, and Mexico has 42.8% of its traffic from malicious bots⁸. Even the U.S. saw a rise in bad bot activity, going from 32.1% in 2022 to 35.4% in 2023⁸.

These numbers highlight the increasing danger of bot traffic. It’s vital for businesses and people to protect their online space. As the digital world changes, understanding and fighting against this automated activity is key.

Internet Bots Creating Traffic from Generative AI

Generative AI and large language models (LLMs) are changing the bot world fast. The 2024 Imperva Bad Bot Report shows simple bots now make up 39.6% of traffic, up from 33.4% in 2022⁹. This growth is due to web scraping bots and automated crawlers. It also lets non-tech users write their own scripts.

Simple Bots Increased to 39.6% in 2023

The rise of AI-powered bots is a worry. They can create fake reviews and spread misinformation¹⁰. Almost half of all internet traffic comes from bots, says cybersecurity firm Imperva¹⁰. This makes it hard to tell real content from fake.

As AI use grows, it’s key for websites and content creators to be on guard. They need to use new tech to fight deepfakes and fake accounts¹⁰. The battle to spot real from fake content is more urgent than ever.

Account Takeover: A Persistent Business Risk

The digital world is always changing, and account takeover (ATO) attacks are a big threat for businesses. The 2024 Imperva Bad Bot Report showed a scary trend – ATO attacks went up by 10% in 2023¹¹. Especially, 44% of these attacks targeted API endpoints, a big jump from 35% in 2022¹¹. This shows how important it is to keep API-driven apps and services safe.

ATO attacks have a big impact, with 11% of all login attempts being part of an ATO¹². The hardest hit industries were Financial Services (36.8%), Travel (11.5%), and Business Services (8%)¹¹. As businesses try to keep their customers safe and build trust, strong security is more important than ever.

Bots play a big role in ATO attacks, with automated threats making up 30% of API attacks in 2023¹². Also, 17% of these API attacks were from bad bots using business logic flaws¹². Cybersecurity experts need to be on high alert and use detailed plans to fight bot-driven account takeover attacks¹¹.

44% of ATO Attacks Targeted APIs

API-driven apps have become a main target for API attacks by bots. In 2023, 44% of all ATO attacks hit API endpoints, up from 35% the year before¹¹¹². This huge jump shows how crucial it is for companies to focus on API security and use strong defenses against the impact of bots on account takeover¹¹.

APIs: A Popular Vector for Attacks

The API world has become a favorite spot for hackers. In 2023, automated threats led to 30% of API attacks¹³. A scary 17% of these were from bad bots that found weaknesses in the API’s design¹³.

These weaknesses let attackers misuse the API. They can sneak into places they shouldn’t and get to private data or accounts¹³.

More and more, hackers use bots to find and use APIs. This is because APIs are a direct way to get to important info¹³. The 2024 Imperva Bad Bot Report shows APIs are now a big target for misuse, posing a big API security challenge for companies¹³.

• 71% of internet traffic in 2023 was API calls¹⁴
• The average site saw 1.5 billion API calls in 2023¹⁴
• Companies had about 613 API endpoints live in 2023¹⁴
• API security issues cost businesses around $75 billion a year worldwide¹⁴

As APIs become more important, the danger from bot attacks grows. It’s key for businesses to act fast to protect their APIs. This helps keep data safe and trust with customers¹³¹⁴.

By tackling these API security issues, companies can fight off more API attacks by bots. This helps protect their digital stuff¹³¹⁴¹⁵.

Every Industry Impacted by Bot Traffic

Bot activity is a big worry for many industries. In 2023, almost half (49.6%) of all internet traffic came from bots, up 2% from the year before³¹⁶. These automated agents are a big deal, making up 32% of all internet traffic worldwide²¹⁶.

Gaming, Retail, Travel Sectors Heavily Targeted

The gaming world is hit hard by bots, with 57.2% of its traffic coming from them for two years in a row². Retail (24.4%), travel (20.7%), and financial services (15.7%) also see a lot of bot attacks².

But it’s not just big industries that are affected. Advanced bad bots, which act a lot like humans, target law and government (75.8%), entertainment (70.8%), and financial services (67.1%) the most².

These smart bots can cause big problems, like taking over accounts or exploiting APIs, costing companies billions¹⁶. As bots get smarter, it’s key for businesses in every field to stay alert and use strong security.

Residential ISPs Fuel Bad Bot Traffic

The digital world is changing fast, and so is the fight against bad bots. The 2024 Imperva Bad Bot Report shows a scary rise in bad bot traffic from home internet services. This traffic has jumped to 25.8%¹⁷.

Bad actors are now using home IP addresses to hide their bot activities. This makes it harder to catch them.

Bad bots are getting smarter, pretending to be mobile users. In fact, 44.8% of bad bot traffic now looks like it’s coming from mobile devices, up from 28.1% five years ago¹⁷. They use home or mobile ISPs to look like real users. This makes it tough to spot them.

This trend is worrying, as home ISPs are becoming hotspots for bad bots. These bots are doing all sorts of harm, like web scraping and spamming¹⁷. Businesses need to be careful and use strong security to fight this.

Mobile User Agents Masking Bad Bots

The use of mobile user agents by bad bots is a big worry. They pretend to be real mobile users to get past security¹⁷. This means we need better ways to catch these bots.

The fight against bad bots is ongoing. Companies must use strong security and work together to keep up with these bots¹⁷. This way, they can protect their online world and keep customers safe¹⁷¹⁸.

Protecting Against Malicious Automated Traffic

With nearly half of all global internet traffic coming from bots¹⁹²⁰, protecting digital assets is crucial. The 2024 Imperva Bad Bot Report highlights the need for proactive measures. Nanhi Singh, Imperva’s General Manager of Application Security, warns that bad bots are targeting APIs to steal data or compromise accounts.

Bot management requires a variety of strategies. Conducting IP analysis helps spot malicious IP addresses. Analyzing the geolocation of IP addresses can also detect botnet activity¹⁹. User-agent analysis identifies bots by their client type, often generic or modified¹⁹.

For bots that act like humans, behavior analysis is key. It looks at session duration and interactions¹⁹. Web Application Firewalls (WAFs) block malicious bot traffic and other automated attacks¹⁹.

Organizations should invest in specialized bot management solutions that work with WAFs. These solutions offer real-time threat intelligence and AI-driven analysis¹⁹. A comprehensive approach with visibility and durable telemetry can defend against malicious traffic¹⁹.

The fight against bad bots is constant. But with a multi-layered defense and vigilance, organizations can protect their digital spaces and customers from malicious traffic¹⁹²⁰.

The Future of Bot Management

The future of bot traffic on the internet is a growing concern. The 2024 Imperva Bad Bot Report shows bots will soon outdo human traffic²¹²². This shift will change how we build and protect our online presence. With more AI tools coming, we need strong bot management and API security.

Scraping activity saw a huge jump, up by 432% from Q1 to Q2 2023²¹. This shows automated threats are getting smarter and more common. Tech companies face the most bad bot traffic, with 76% of their traffic being malicious²¹.

The gaming and social media industries also struggle, with 29% and 46% of their traffic coming from bad bots²¹. E-commerce and financial services are hit hard too, with 65% and 45% of their traffic being bad bots²¹.

In the first half of 2023, over 3 billion fraud farm attacks were reported²¹. Brazil, India, Russia, Vietnam, and the Philippines were hotspots for fraud²¹.

To tackle these issues, companies need to invest in top-notch bot management and API security. Imperva’s Advanced Bot Protection offers complete control over all types of bot traffic²³.

As bots’ impact grows, managing bot traffic will become crucial. Tools like Imperva’s will help organizations protect their digital assets from harm²².

Conclusion

The 2024 Imperva Bad Bot Report shows bots are a big deal for the internet. In 2023, almost half (49.6%) of all internet traffic was from bots. This is up from 30.2% in 2022²⁴.

This means businesses need to fight back against bad bots. These bots are costing companies billions by attacking websites, APIs, and apps²⁵.

Bot traffic is getting smarter, using tricks like generative AI to hide. Companies must invest in good bot management and API security. This is to keep their online services safe and their customers happy²⁴.

The gaming world saw the most bad bot traffic at 57.2%. Retail, Travel, and Financial Services got hit the hardest by bot attacks²⁴. It’s key for all businesses to tackle bot traffic to keep their digital spaces running well.

As bot traffic keeps growing, so does the need for a strong bot management plan. By learning from the 2024 Imperva Bad Bot Report, companies can protect their online world. They can keep their customers safe and their digital spaces healthy²⁴²⁶.

Source Links

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