Are Bots Dangerous? Understanding the Threats and How to Stay Safe

Bisma Farrukh

Bisma Farrukh

October 15, 2025
Updated on October 15, 2025
Are Bots Dangerous? Understanding the Threats and How to Stay Safe

All of us know that the internet would not function without bots. From search engines indexing billions of web pages to chatbots providing instant customer support, bots automate tasks, improve efficiency, and enhance user experiences. However, not all bots serve beneficial purposes; malicious bots silently infiltrate systems, steal sensitive data, manipulate traffic, and even crash websites.

With automated bot traffic now accounting for over 50% of all web activity in 2025, understanding the difference between good and bad bots has never been more critical.

In this article, we’ll answer the question: are bots dangerous? We’ll explore how they operate, the key differences between helpful and harmful bots, and most importantly, how you can protect your business and personal data from bot-driven threats.

What Are Bots?

Bots are a term short for “robots,” software applications programmed to perform automated tasks online. These tasks can be simple, like crawling websites for data, or complex, like mimicking human interaction on social platforms. Bots can operate independently or be controlled remotely by attackers.

There are countless types of bots, but they generally fall into two broad categories. Beneficial bots help users or services (like Googlebot), and malicious bots are designed to deceive systems.

How Does a Bot Work?

The following are the steps of how the bot works.

Input is Received

  • The bot receives input from a user.
  • This input could be text (chat), voice, or a command (e.g., click or button press).

Processing the Input

  • The bot analyzes the input to understand what the user wants.
  • It may use rules, artificial intelligence (AI), or natural language processing (NLP) to understand the message.

Determining the Intent

  • The bot determines the user’s intent (e.g., asking for weather, booking a ticket, etc.).
  • It may also extract essential details (like date, location, or name).

Generating a Response

  • Based on the intent, the bot creates an appropriate response.
  • This can be a text reply, acting, or showing information.

Sending the Output

  • The bot sends the response back to the user.
  • It might reply with text if it’s a chatbot; if it’s a voice assistant, it will speak.

Learning and Improving (Optional)

  • Some bots use machine learning to improve over time based on previous interactions.
  • This makes them smarter and more accurate in use.

Integration with Other Services

  • Bots often connect to other systems (calendars, databases, APIs, etc.) to fetch or send information.
How Does a Bot Work?

Types of Malicious Bots

Malicious bots are software programs designed to perform harmful tasks online. They often operate in the background, evading detection while executing various attacks that can compromise systems and disrupt services. As technology evolves, these bots have become more advanced, targeting both small websites and large enterprises alike. Below are the most common types of malicious bots you should be aware of:

1. Credential Stuffing Bots

Credential stuffing bots are automated tools that test large volumes of stolen usernames and passwords across multiple websites. These bots take advantage of the fact that many users reuse the same login credentials across different accounts. Once a bot gains access to an account, it can carry out fraudulent activities such as unauthorized purchases and identity fraud.

2. DDoS Bots (Distributed Denial of Service)

DDoS bots are programmed to flood a website or server with massive traffic quickly, overwhelming its infrastructure. These bots are often part of larger botnets, networks of hijacked devices that coordinate attacks.

A notable case was the Mirai botnet attack in 2016, which took down major sites like Twitter, Netflix, and Reddit. With multi-vector strategies and application-layer targeting, DDoS attacks have grown more complex.

3. Web Scraper Bots

These bots are designed to extract data from websites without permission. While scraping itself isn’t always malicious, it becomes a problem when it involves stealing intellectual property and user-generated content. Competitors often use scraper bots to copy business models. In e-commerce, unauthorized scraping can result in skewed analytics, inflated infrastructure costs, and even legal issues due to terms of service violations.

4. Spam Bots

Spam bots flood websites, blogs, social media platforms, and contact forms with irrelevant content. They often promote fake products and adult content. Spam bots on forums and comment sections can degrade user experience and hurt a website’s credibility. In 2024, Meta reported that nearly 90% of comment-based spam on Facebook and Instagram originated from bot activity.

5. Click Fraud Bots

Click fraud bots are used in digital advertising to fraudulently inflate the number of ad clicks. This can drain advertising budgets without any real engagement or conversions. These bots may repeatedly click on PPC (pay-per-click) ads, making advertisers pay more for poor-quality traffic. Global estimates suggest that ad fraud costs businesses over $84 billion in 2023, much of it driven by click bots and fraudulent impressions. If this trend continues, we’re looking at a market value of $172 billion by 2028.

6. Inventory Hoarding Bots

Known as scalper bots, these are designed to add large quantities of products to carts, often of limited-stock items. They’re common in the ticketing and sneaker industries, where they buy up inventory before genuine customers can, reselling at inflated prices. In 2020, PS5 and Xbox console launches were heavily targeted by scalper bots, leaving thousands of customers frustrated and prices skyrocketing in secondary markets.

7. Spy Bots

Spy bots are stealthy programs that monitor user activity and collect sensitive information. They often come bundled with other malware and are challenging to detect. Once active, they can log keystrokes, track browsing habits, and access confidential files. Businesses targeted by spy bots may suffer data leaks, insider threats, and violations of privacy regulations like GDPR.

8. Zombie Bots

Zombie bots are infected devices that hackers take over without the owner’s knowledge. These bots become part of a botnet, a larger network used to launch coordinated cyberattacks and mine cryptocurrency. The rise of smart devices has made it easier for attackers to build zombie botnets, often exploiting weak passwords.

9. Scalping Bots

Often used in e-commerce, scalping bots buy up limited-edition items within milliseconds of release. These bots bypass queue systems and CAPTCHA protections, locking out genuine buyers. The items are then resold at inflated prices, creating artificial scarcity. Retailers like Nike, Walmart, and Target have faced ongoing challenges from scalping bots during product drops and holiday seasons.

Signs of Bot Attacks on Your Website

Malicious bot activity can silently damage your website long before you realize something is wrong. Unlike obvious cyberattacks that crash systems instantly, bot attacks often operate under the radar, flooding your traffic, scraping your content without setting off alarm bells. There are signs; if you know what to look for, you can detect and stop them before they cause serious harm. Here are the most common signs that your website may be under attack by bots:

1. Sudden Spikes in Traffic Without Explanation

One of the earliest indicators of a bot attack is a rapid, unexplained surge in website traffic. This is especially suspicious if it happens outside your typical traffic patterns, such as during the night and when you’re not running any campaigns. Unlike human visitors, bots can generate thousands of page requests per minute. These fake visits inflate your analytics, distort engagement metrics, and strain your infrastructure.

2. Unusually High Bounce Rates

Bots don’t behave like real users. They often hit a page and move between pages unnaturally. If your bounce rate suddenly spikes without an apparent reason, it could be due to bots skimming your site for content. In Google Analytics, you might notice sessions with zero time on page, 1-second visit durations, or 100% bounce rates from strange referral sources.

3. Spikes in Failed Login Attempts

Credential stuffing bots attempt thousands of logins using stolen usernames and passwords. If your login system is suddenly flooded with failed attempts, especially from the same IP range, that’s a clear red flag.

These bots often rotate through proxy networks to avoid being blocked, so the attacks may come from various IPs worldwide. A surge in password reset requests is another indirect clue.

4. Slower Website Performance

Malicious bots generate excessive server requests, consuming resources and bandwidth. If your site suddenly becomes sluggish or crashes during traffic spikes, bots may overload your system. DDoS bots aim to cripple your infrastructure by overwhelming it with traffic, causing downtime and frustrating your real users.

5. Strange Patterns in Analytics Data

Bot behavior often shows up as odd trends in your analytics:

  • Excessively high or low session durations
  • High pageviews per session with no engagement
  • Spikes in traffic from unexpected geolocations
  • A large volume of visits with unknown or suspicious user-agent strings

6. Increase in Spam Form Submissions

Form bots crawl websites looking for input fields; contact forms, signup boxes, and comment sections flood them with junk content. If your inbox is full of spam from your own forms, bots are likely bypassing your CAPTCHA or validation tools. This may include:

  • Gibberish or repetitive text
  • Suspicious links
  • Adult content
  • Fake names or email addresses

7. Unusual API

Sophisticated bots don’t just attack the front end of your website; they also target backend systems and APIs. If you notice:

  • Repeated API calls from unfamiliar IPs
  • Spikes in server CPU or memory usage
  • Odd database queries or traffic to endpoints

8. Abnormal Checkout

In e-commerce, bots often abuse shopping carts by hoarding inventory, executing fake checkouts, or reserving limited-edition products. This behavior often indicates scalper or hoarding bots, especially during product launches or holiday sales. You may notice:

  • A large number of abandoned carts
  • High volume of cart additions without conversions
  • Fast checkout times
  • Purchases made milliseconds after product release

9. Firewall Logs

Modern security tools and web application firewalls (WAFs) can often detect bot behavior before you can. Frequent alerts about suspicious requests, blocked IPs, or bot-like behavior in your security logs should not be ignored. Many bots try to brute-force vulnerabilities, scan for outdated plugins, or exploit forms; activities that security systems will flag if properly configured.

Real Examples of Bots

Bots are everywhere online; some are helpful, and others are harmful. Looking at real-world examples is essential to understanding bots’ impact on the digital ecosystem. From search engines to social media manipulation, bots play many roles. Below is a breakdown of well-known good and bad bots, how they operate, and their effects.

Good Bots

Good bots are designed to serve users or improve how systems function. They follow rules, respect website service terms, and positively impact digital infrastructure.

1. Googlebot

Googlebot is the most widely known and essential bot on the internet. It’s the crawler used by Google to scan and index web pages, helping users find relevant content in search results.

  • Purpose: Index websites for Google Search
  • Behavior: Follows sitemap instructions, obeys robots.txt files
  • Impact: Drives organic traffic and SEO performance

2. Bingbot

Similar to Googlebot, Bingbot is used by Microsoft’s Bing search engine. It crawls the web, gathers data, and updates Bing’s search index.

  • Purpose: Help users find web content through Bing
  • Behavior: Transparent and easy to track in server logs

3. Chatbots (e.g., Intercom, Drift)

These bots interact with website users, answering questions, guiding navigation, or collecting lead information.

  • Purpose: Automate customer service and engagement
  • Benefit: Reduces wait times and improves user experience

4. Monitoring Bots (e.g., UptimeRobot)

These bots check websites regularly to ensure they are up and running. If downtime is detected, they notify administrators immediately.

  • Purpose: Alert site owners of outages
  • Impact: Improves reliability and response time for issues

5. RSS Feed Bots

News aggregators and publishing tools use these bots to scan RSS feeds to gather and republish content from various sources.

Bad Bots

Bad bots are built to carry out malicious or unethical activities online. They often disguise themselves as legitimate users, making them harder to detect.

1. Mirai Botnet

The Mirai botnet is one of the most infamous examples of a malicious botnet. In 2016, it took down major websites, including Netflix, Twitter, and Reddit, by launching massive DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks using hijacked IoT devices like routers and cameras.

  • Method: Scanned the internet for unsecured devices, infected them, and turned them into bots
  • Impact: Caused global internet slowdowns and outages

2. Sneaker Bots (e.g., AIO Bot)

These bots automate the purchase of limited-edition products the moment they’re released. They can buy up inventory faster than any human and then resell items at inflated prices.

  • Targets: Nike, Adidas, Supreme, and similar retailers
  • Impact: Unfair purchasing, inflated secondary market, customer frustration

3. Content Scraper Bots

These bots steal content from websites such as blog posts, product descriptions, and pricing information to republish or use for competitive advantage.

  • Common Victims: E-commerce stores, news sites, and SaaS platforms
  • Impact: Plagiarism, SEO penalties, and data theft

4. Spam Bots on Social Media (e.g., Twitter Bots)

Spam bots create fake social media accounts that automatically post, like, share, or follow other users to manipulate engagement or spread misinformation.

  • Purpose: Promote scams, phishing links, or fake news
  • Impact: Damages platform trust, misleads users, affects public opinion

5. Scalper Bots (e.g., Grinch Bots)

These bots are notorious around holidays and product launches. They buy popular items like game consoles, concert tickets, and collectibles within seconds of their release.

  • Example: During the 2020 PS5 launch, bots purchased thousands of units before real customers could
  • Impact: Shortages, inflated resale prices, poor customer experience

6. Click Fraud Bots

These bots repeatedly click on ads (especially PPC ads) to drain marketing budgets or sabotage competitors.

  • Impact: Wastes ad spend, distorts analytics, hurts ROI

7. Fake Review Bots

Some companies use bots to flood platforms like Amazon, Yelp, or Google Reviews with fake positive or negative reviews to influence public perception.

  • Impact: Misleads consumers, damages competitor reputations

Good vs Bad Bots

CategoryGood BotsBad Bots
PurposeTo improve user experience, automate helpful tasks, or support infrastructureTo harm, exploit, or disrupt systems
Examples Googlebot (search indexing), Intercom (chat support), UptimeRobot (monitoring)Mirai Botnet (DDoS), Scraper bots (content theft), Sneaker bots (scalping)
BehaviorFollows rules (e.g., robots.txt, rate limits), transparent operationsEvades detection, mimics human behavior, bypasses security controls
IdentificationIdentifiable user-agent strings, public documentation availableUses fake or obfuscated identities, rotating IPs, and spoofed user agents
ComplianceOperates within legal and ethical guidelines, respects site policiesOften violates terms of service, privacy laws, and security protocols
Access PatternsPredictable, steady traffic; minimal server loadHigh-frequency, erratic, or burst traffic can overload servers
Impact on WebsitesEnhances visibility (SEO), improves uptime, and automates support tasksCauses downtime, skews analytics, drains resources, steals data
User ExperienceEnhances interactions and search accuracyReduces trust, creates frustration
Security RiskLow risk, usually well-documented and maintained by reputable sourcesHigh risk, used for cyberattacks, fraud, data breaches, or phishing
Detection DifficultyEasy to detect and allowlistDifficult to identify due to stealth tactics and botnet distribution
Regulated UseUsed openly by companies (e.g., search engines, support services)Often operated by cybercriminals or unethical parties behind the scenes
Example Use CasesSearch engine indexing, Real-time site monitoring, and FAQ automationCredential stuffing, Ad fraud, and Inventory hoarding
Cost to BusinessReduces operational costs, increases efficiencyCauses financial loss (e.g., ad fraud, server cost, reputation damage)
Response StrategyAllow and optimize performanceBlock or throttle using bot management, firewalls, and rate limiting

How to Protect Against Malicious Bots?

As bots become more advanced, traditional security tools are no longer enough to stop them. Today’s malicious bots can mimic human behavior, rotate through IP addresses, and bypass basic protections like CAPTCHA. You need a layered, proactive bot management strategy to defend your website or digital infrastructure effectively. Here are proven ways to protect your business from malicious bots:

1. Implement Advanced Bot Management Solutions

Modern bot management platforms like Cloudflare Bot Management, Imperva, Radware, or Akamai Bot Manager use machine learning, behavioral analysis, and real-time threat intelligence to identify and block malicious bots without affecting real users.

These solutions detect anomalies in user behavior, such as rapid clicks, unusual navigation patterns, or fake user agents, and respond instantly. Some platforms even allow good bots while blocking bad ones.

2. Use CAPTCHA and reCAPTCHA Wisely

CAPTCHA tools (Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart), such as Google reCAPTCHA, are still effective against basic bots. They prevent automated form submissions, spam, and brute-force login attempts.

However, some bots can now solve CAPTCHA challenges using AI or human-solving farms, so use CAPTCHA as one layer, not your only line of defense.

3. Deploy Web Application Firewalls (WAF)

A Web Application Firewall acts as a filter between your website and incoming traffic. WAFs can block requests from suspicious IPs, known bot signatures, and traffic anomalies. Cloudflare WAF, Sucuri, and AWS WAF are highly configurable and integrate with bot detection tools to block malicious bots in real time.

4. Monitor Traffic and Behavior Analytics

Unusual traffic patterns such as sharp spikes in pageviews, sudden drops in conversion rates, or surges in failed logins often indicate bot activity. Regularly reviewing your analytics data helps you detect these anomalies.

Look for signs such as:

  • Multiple requests from a single IP
  • Traffic from regions you don’t target
  • Sessions with speedy navigation times

5. Throttle Known Bad IPs and User Agents

Many bot attacks originate from known malicious IP ranges, outdated browsers, or suspicious user-agent strings. You can block or slow down traffic from these sources by maintaining and updating blocklists. Geo-blocking can also be helpful if your business only serves specific regions. Use services like Project Honey Pot or AbuseIPDB to auto-block malicious IPs.

6. Rate Limiting and Throttling

Limit the number of requests a user (or bot) can make quickly. This helps mitigate brute-force attacks, credential stuffing, and scraping attempts. Allow a maximum of 5 login attempts per minute per IP. After that, throttle the requests or temporarily block access. Most cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, Cloudflare) offer built-in rate-limiting features.

7. Use Honeypots to Catch Bots

Honeypots are invisible form fields or links that regular users won’t see or interact with, but bots will. When these fields are triggered, the system knows a bot is likely involved and can take action (e.g., block or flag the IP). Honeypots don’t affect the user experience and are highly effective against low-level bots.

8. Strengthen Authentication with MFA

Enable Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) across all user and admin logins. Even if a bot successfully steals a username and password, it won’t be able to access the account without the second layer of authentication. Admin dashboards, CMS platforms (like WordPress), and any system with user accounts.

9. Keep Software and Plugins Updated

Outdated CMS plugins, themes, or software are prime targets for bots scanning for vulnerabilities. Regularly updating your systems reduces the attack surface bots can exploit. Set up automated updates for your CMS and plugins, or schedule monthly security reviews.

10. Educate Your Team

Many bot-related incidents start with human error, such as clicking phishing links or ignoring security warnings. Train your team to recognize suspicious traffic patterns, report anomalies, and use security best practices when managing site access or code.

How to Protect Against Malicious Bots?

How does AstrillVPN help against bot attacks?

AstrillVPN helps protect against bot attacks primarily by masking your real IP address and encrypting your internet traffic. When you connect to the internet through Astrill, your IP is hidden behind the VPN server’s IP. This makes it difficult for bots to target your device directly, as they cannot easily identify your real network. Additionally, the encrypted connection prevents malicious bots from intercepting your data during transmission, which is especially important when using public networks.

Moreover, AstrillVPN can mitigate bot attacks such as brute force or DDoS (Distributed Denial-of-Service), credential stuffing, or scraping. by allowing you to change IP addresses quickly or use features like multi-hop VPN and stealth modes. These features further obscure your online presence, reducing your exposure to automated attacks that rely on tracking a single IP. While a VPN alone doesn’t replace dedicated anti-bot systems, it adds an extra layer of security, making it harder for bots to locate, monitor, and attack your system.

Future of Bot Threats and Defense

As the internet becomes more intelligent and connected, bot threats are evolving as rapidly as the tools designed to stop them. What was once a nuisance, like spam or basic web scraping, has become a high-stakes cybersecurity challenge involving artificial intelligence, automation, and large-scale digital warfare.

Understanding where bot threats are heading and how defenses keep pace is essential for businesses, developers, and IT professionals who want to stay protected in the coming years.

Rising Sophistication of Malicious Bots

Bots are no longer simple scripts that click buttons or fill out forms. Modern malicious bots can:

  • Mimic human behavior by randomly moving cursors, scrolling, or delaying keystrokes.
  • Bypass CAPTCHA and anti-bot tools using machine learning or human-solving services.
  • Evade detection by rotating IPs, residential proxies, or spoofing browser fingerprints.
  • Adapt over time, learning from defenses and modifying their attack patterns dynamically.

According to the Imperva Bot Traffic Report, in 2024, it was estimated that nearly 50% of all internet traffic came from bots, and over 30% of that traffic was malicious. With access to advanced tools, even small-time attackers can launch sophisticated, AI-powered bots that once required nation-state-level resources.

How AI and Machine Learning Are Fueling Bot Evolution?

Attackers are now using artificial intelligence to build adaptive, stealthy bots that improve themselves with each failed attempt. These next-gen bots can:

  • Analyze responses from servers and modify their attack methods in real time.
  • Generate fake personas for account creation or social media manipulation.
  • Clone legitimate user behavior so accurately that traditional detection systems can’t tell the difference.

The Future of Bot Defense Technologies

To counter more intelligent bots. The future of bot defense will focus on:

1. Behavioral Biometrics

Instead of relying solely on IPs or user agents, systems will detect bots by analyzing how users interact:

  • Typing rhythm
  • Mouse movement patterns
  • Touchscreen gestures
  • Scrolling behavior

2. Real-Time Threat Intelligence Sharing

Bot detection tools will increasingly share threat data in real-time across networks and organizations. This collective defense strategy will help stop botnets and new bot types faster, especially in finance, e-commerce, and healthcare sectors.

3. Zero Trust Security Models

Web security will shift toward zero-trust frameworks, where every interaction, regardless of origin, is verified. Bots that spoof legitimacy will have a harder time accessing systems and data.

4. AI vs AI Defense Systems

Just as AI powers advanced bots, it will also be used to detect and fight them. Future bot mitigation platforms will:

  • Use deep learning models to detect anomalies in real-time
  • Predict bot behavior based on historical data.
  • Simulate bot attacks in controlled environments to train defenses proactively.

Emerging Threats to Watch

Looking ahead to 2025 and beyond, organizations should prepare for:

 AI-Generated Social Bots

Bots that can engage in realistic, long-form conversations on platforms like X (Twitter), Reddit, or forums, influencing opinions, reviews, and even elections.

 API Abuse

As businesses shift to headless architecture and microservices, attackers will increasingly target vulnerable APIs using bots to steal data, overload systems, or trigger unwanted actions.

Voice and IoT Bots

With the rise of smart devices, expect voice-command bots and IoT-targeting bots that can infiltrate homes, offices, or connected vehicles.

Deepfake Bots

Bots could impersonate humans using AI-generated audio, video, or synthetic identities during onboarding, KYC processes, or customer service interactions.

Conclusion

Bots are inevitable in the digital ecosystem; some are essential, while others pose serious threats. Understanding the difference between good and bad bots, recognizing signs of an attack, and using the proper protection tools can safeguard your digital presence. In the coming years, bot threats will become more complex, but so will our defenses. Staying informed and proactive is the best way to ensure you’re prepared.

FAQs

What damage can malicious bots cause to my business?

Malicious bots can steal customer data, drain resources, inflate marketing costs, damage SEO rankings, and even bring your website down. They also compromise customer trust, which can lead to long-term brand damage.

How do DDoS bots work and why are they dangerous?

DDoS bots coordinate massive traffic attacks using thousands of devices. These attacks overwhelm servers, causing downtime and revenue loss. They’re particularly dangerous because they often disguise themselves as legitimate users.

What should I do if I discover bot activity on my website?

Start by identifying the nature of the bot traffic using analytics tools. Block offending IPs, enable bot protection services, and update your firewalls. If customer data has been compromised, notify affected users and follow data breach protocols.

How is artificial intelligence changing bot threats?

AI is making bots smarter. Malicious bots now use AI to mimic human actions, bypass security measures, and evolve based on previous detection. However, AI is also helping defenders detect bots faster and more accurately.

What new bot threats should I prepare for?

Prepare for AI-generated bots that can imitate human browsing, social engineering bots, and zero-day exploit bots that take advantage of new vulnerabilities before they’re patched. Keeping security infrastructure agile and proactive is key.

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About The Author

Bisma Farrukh

Bisma is a seasoned writer passionate about topics like cybersecurity, privacy and data breach issues. She has been working in VPN industry for more than 5 years now and loves to talk about security issues. She loves to explore the books and travel guides in her leisure time.

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