In the ever-evolving digital landscape, bots have emerged as powerful tools that significantly impact our online experiences. Working behind the scenes on everything from social media platforms and apps to search engines, these intelligent computer programs have revolutionized how we interact, automate tasks, and access information. They have also been an invaluable tool for hackers, allowing them to steal credentials and commit fraud at an unprecedented scale.

In this comprehensive blog, we'll delve into the realm of bots, exploring their various applications, their role in shaping our online ecosystem, and the distinctions between good and bad bots. We'll also shed some much-needed light on the current state of cybersecurity and explore how companies can best defend against bot attacks using tools like firewalls, employing bot management best practices, and leveraging digital identity.

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What is a bot?

A bot, short for "robot," is a computer program or software application designed to perform automated tasks. Bots are created to mimic human behavior and interact with users or other systems through various interfaces, such as websites, messaging platforms, or APIs (Application Programming Interfaces). These programs can execute repetitive tasks at a much faster pace and with greater efficiency than humans.

Bots are software applications that can be programmed to perform a wide range of functions. They can gather and analyze data, provide customer support, automate processes registering for an online account, simulate conversations, perform web scraping, and even power digital assistants like Apple’s Siri and Amazon’s Alexa. Bots are commonly used in social media platforms, messaging apps, search engines, e-commerce websites, and other digital environments.

Are bots good or bad?

Because there are many, many different types of bots, it’s impossible to classify all bots as either good or bad. 

There are two primary categories of bots: computer bots and internet bots.  While some bots in either category serve legitimate and beneficial purposes, such as improving user experiences or assisting with routine tasks, other bots can be created with malicious intent. Malicious bots, often referred to as "bad bots," can be programmed by hackers to engage in harmful activities such as spamming, conducting fraudulent transactions, initiating cyber attacks, or spreading fake news on social media.

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What are common examples of good bots?

Good bots are the positive face of automation, offering various benefits across different domains including customer service, data analysis, and search engines. 

Customer Service

One prominent application is in the realm of customer service. Customer service bots, also known as chatbots, assist users in navigating websites, answering frequently asked questions, and providing instant support. These bots enhance user experiences by delivering quick and efficient assistance around the clock.

Data Analysis

Another positive application of bots is in data analysis. Data analysis bots are programmed to process and analyze large volumes of data, extracting valuable insights and trends. They play a significant role in industries such as finance, marketing, and healthcare, where complex data sets need to be analyzed quickly and accurately.

Search Engines

An app bot, also known as an application bot, is a type of bot that is integrated into a mobile application to perform various functions and enhance user experiences. These bots are designed to interact with users within the app interface, providing information, completing tasks, or delivering personalized services.

In the vast digital landscape of the internet, search engines play a crucial role in helping users discover relevant information. Behind the scenes, bots are the unsung heroes that enable search engines to crawl and index web pages, ensuring efficient and accurate search results. In this section, we will explore the relationship between bots and search engines, their impact on search engine optimization (SEO), and the role of bots in online advertising.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is the practice of optimizing web pages to improve their visibility and ranking in search engine results. Bots play a crucial role in determining how well a website is optimized for search engines.

What are examples of bad bots?

Bad bots refer to automated software programs designed to perform malicious activities on the internet. These bots operate with the intent to deceive, exploit, or harm individuals, businesses, or computer systems. Some common examples of bad bots include:

Scraping Bots

‍ These bots scrape content from websites without permission, violating copyright laws and terms of service. They gather valuable data such as prices, product details, or contact information, which can be used for competitive advantage or spamming purposes.

Spam Bots:

Spam bots generate and distribute unsolicited and often fraudulent messages, advertisements, or links. They can flood email inboxes, comment sections, social media platforms, and forums with unwanted or harmful content, compromising user experience and security.

Spam bots on social media are programmed by hackers to establish fake profiles using public information that generates posts spreading misinformation, rumors, or slander intended to sway public opinion about hot-topic issues like the war in Ukraine, COVID-19, and even meme stocks. These so-called social media bots are trained to mimic human conversation. To legitimize their posts, bad actors will create “bot farms” that create and manage thousands of fake accounts to create and engage with topics, often making them trend. Because of their sheer number (nearly 15% of accounts on apps like Twitter according to one study), bots can significantly influence the spread of fake news and political polarization. Social media bots are so skilled at imitating human activity that users often have a difficult time detecting them.

Credential Stuffing Bots

‍These bots automate large-scale login attempts using stolen usernames and passwords. They exploit users' reused credentials across multiple websites, aiming to gain unauthorized access to user accounts, steal personal information, or engage in identity theft.

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DDoS Bots

Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) bots orchestrate large-scale attacks by overwhelming targeted systems with an enormous volume of traffic or requests. This causes system failures, disrupts services, and renders websites or online platforms inaccessible to legitimate users.

Malware Distribution Bots

‍These bots are designed to distribute malware, such as viruses, worms, ransomware, or spyware. They often exploit vulnerabilities in software or trick users into downloading malicious files, leading to compromised systems, data breaches, or financial losses.

A botnet is a network of compromised devices that are controlled remotely by malicious actors. These devices, which can include computers, smartphones, or Internet of Things (IoT) devices, are infected with bot malware, turning them into "zombie" bots. The botmaster, or bot herder, gains control over the botnet and can issue commands to carry out various malicious activities, such as launching coordinated attacks, distributing spam or malware, or stealing sensitive information.

Botnets are often created through tactics like phishing, malware infections, or exploiting vulnerabilities in devices and software. Their widespread reach and the collective computing power of compromised devices make them potent tools for cybercriminals.

Click Fraud Bots

‍Click fraud bots simulate clicks on online advertisements or sponsored links, generating fraudulent traffic and draining advertisers' budgets. They deceive advertising platforms, manipulate analytics, and undermine the effectiveness of online advertising campaigns.

To combat bad bots, organizations employ various strategies such as implementing bot detection and mitigation technologies, utilizing CAPTCHAs and other security measures, monitoring website traffic and user behavior patterns, and maintaining up-to-date security protocols. By identifying and mitigating the threats posed by bad bots, businesses can protect their assets, and user privacy, and maintain a safe online environment.

Fact: bots account for almost 30% of all internet traffic.

How do you identify malicious bots?

Various indicators can help you detect the presence of malicious bots in a system. Look out for the following signs:

1. Frequent software application glitches and unexplained computer crashes.
2. Emails or chat messages are being sent from your computer to contacts without your knowledge.
3. Sluggish loading of applications compared to normal.
4. Abnormally slow internet connection.
5. Unexpected pop-up spam appears, even when you're not actively using the internet.
6. The computer's fan runs at high speeds randomly when it's idle.
7. Changes in system settings without your consent, with no option to revert them.
8. The internet browser contains unfamiliar features or add-ons that you did not install.
9. Extended time is taken for the computer to shut down or reboot.
10. Incorrect or failed shutdown and reboot attempts.
11. Unknown programs running in the background, as indicated by the activity monitor.
12. Alarming warnings on your computer, urging you to click on a specific link to prevent a virus infection.

By remaining vigilant and recognizing these signs, you can effectively detect the presence of malicious bots in your system.

How do you stop bots?

There are three primary solutions that work together to stop bots from overrunning websites. By implementing CAPTCHA, firewalls, and advanced digital identity solutions like Prove’s Trust Score+™, you can protect your business from bots.

What is CAPTCHA?

In the ongoing struggle to combat automated bot activities, especially spambots, CAPTCHA (Completely Automated Public Turing Test to Tell Computers and Humans Apart) has emerged as a ubiquitous defense mechanism. CAPTCHA serves the crucial purpose of distinguishing between bots and human users, safeguarding online platforms from malicious activities. Unfortunately, they also add a lot of friction to the user experience.

For too long, fraudsters have given the very companies striving to build user-friendly digital experiences no choice but to ruin their sleek websites with cumbersome security measures like CAPTCHAs to defend against bots. Fortunately, there are digital identity solutions that offer more efficient and frictionless ways to differentiate humans from bots. 

What is a firewall?

Firewalls are critical to stopping bots.  A firewall is a network security device or software that acts as a barrier between a trusted internal network and an untrusted external network, such as the Internet. It monitors and controls incoming and outgoing network traffic based on predetermined security rules.

The primary purpose of a firewall is to establish a secure perimeter around a network and protect it from unauthorized access, threats, and malicious activities. It acts as a gatekeeper by examining all incoming and outgoing data packets and making decisions on whether to allow or block them based on the defined rules.

A talented cyberteam will work tirelessly to keep your company’s WAF (web application firewall) updated based on attacks they are observing in real-time. For added protection, enable endpoint BOT protection to protect against attacks related to log-in, password resets, and applications. The final layer, Prove’s identity platform, protects customer-facing applications from velocity attacks typically caused by BOT traffic that slips through the other layers. 

Beyond CAPTCHAs and Firewalls: how can digital identity solutions stop bots?

A great way to bolster your company’s bot management strategy is to leverage Prove’s Trust Score+™. Bot Attacks are prevented by confirming proof of possession of each phone number used by an end consumer. Additionally, phone ownership confirms the identity of a consumer is linked to a specific phone number.

Trust Score+™ is a real-time measure of identity reputation that analyzes authoritative signals such as phone number and device tenure, SIM swap history, velocity, and behavioral anomalies. Bots earn low trust scores because they are often tied to burner phones that have low tenure (not used very long) and exhibit tell-tale behavioral anomalies. 

By employing Trust Score+™, you can protect against different types of bots from compromising your webpage, social media platform, or other software applications without compromising the user experience for human users.

Conclusion

Bots have become a dominant force in the digital landscape, transforming the way we interact, automate repetitive tasks, and access information. While good bots enhance user experiences and provide valuable services, bad bots pose risks such as spreading fake news, conducting cyber attacks, and manipulating online advertising metrics. The battle against bots continues to evolve, with digital identity technologies like Prove’s Trust Score+™ serving as a key defense mechanism to differentiate between humans and bots. 

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