Attackers can use web scraping tools to access data much more rapidly than intended. This can result in data being used for unauthorized purposes.
After reading this article you will be able to:
Related Content
What is content scraping?
What is a bot?
What is bot management?
Brute force attack
What is credential stuffing?
Subscribe to theNET, Cloudflare's monthly recap of the Internet's most popular insights!
Copy article link
Data scraping, in its most general form, refers to a technique in which a computer program extracts data from output generated from another program. Data scraping is commonly manifested in web scraping, the process of using an application to extract valuable information from a website.
Scraper bots can be designed for many purposes, such as:
Crawling refers to the process large search engines like Google undertake when they send their robot crawlers, such as Googlebot, out into the network to index Internet content. Scraping, on the other hand, is typically structured specifically to extract data from a particular website.
Here are 3 differences in behavioral practice between scraper bots and web crawler bots:
Honesty/transparency | Advanced maneuvers | Respecting robots.txt | |
Scraper bot | Will pretend to be web browsers to get past any efforts to block scrapers. | Can take advanced actions such as filling out forms in order to access gated information. | Typically has no regard for robots.txt, meaning they can pull content explicitly against the website owner’s wishes. |
Crawler bot | Will indicate its purpose, wouldn’t attempt to trick a website into thinking the crawler is something it’s not. | Will not try to access gated parts of a website. | Respects robots.txt, meaning they abide by the website owner’s wishes around what data to parse vs. what areas of the website to avoid. |
The process of web scraping is fairly simple, though the implementation can be complex. We can summarize the process in 3 steps:
Typically, companies do not want their unique content to be downloaded and reused for unauthorized purposes, so they might try not to expose all data via a consumable API or other easily accessible resource. Scraper bots, on the other hand, are interested in getting website data regardless of any attempt at limiting access. As a result, a cat-and-mouse game exists between web scraping bots and various content protection strategies, with each trying to outmaneuver the other.
Smart scraping strategies require smart mitigation strategies. Methods of limiting exposure to data scraping efforts include the following:
*A headless browser is a type of web browser, much like Chrome or Firefox, but it doesn’t have a visual user interface by default, allowing it to move much faster than a typical web browser. By essentially running at the level of a command line, a headless browser is able to avoid rendering entire web applications. Data scrapers write bots that use headless browsers to request data more quickly, as there is no human viewing each page being scraped
The only way to guarantee a full stop to web scraping is to stop putting content on a website entirely. However, using an advanced bot management solution can help websites eliminate access for scraper bots.
Cloudflare Bot Management uses machine learning and behavioral analysis to identify malicious scraping activity, protecting unique content and preventing bots from abusing a web property. Similarly, Super Bot Fight Mode is designed to help smaller organizations defend against scrapers and other malicious bot activity, while giving them more visibility into their bot traffic.