New Shocking Statistics Reveal Nearly Half of All Internet Users Are Bots
A new study found that almost half of all Internet traffic in 2022 came from bots, not humans. Security firm Imperva's data showed a significant rise in automated and malicious web activity, with the amount of human traffic falling to its lowest point in 8 years.
So-called "bad bots" that cause problems reached their highest level since Imperva started tracking them in 2013. Bot traffic is expected to grow even more this year due to new AI tools from OpenAI and Google.
Karl Triebes from Imperva said bots have evolved quickly but new AI like ChatGPT and Google's Bard will speed up that evolution over the next 10 years. Cyber criminals will focus more on attacking APIs and software to automate attacks, causing more business disruption and financial damage from bad bots.
Bad bot activity can include things like spam emails, brute force hacks of email accounts, and bots posing as humans to avoid detection. The report also noted a 145% spike in bots attacking Ukrainian websites in early 2022, likely aimed at disrupting infrastructure in sectors like energy, telecom, transport and finance.
Triebes said all organizations should be concerned about rising bot traffic online. The growing amount of bad bots causes real business risks like damage to brands, reduced online sales, and security risks for websites, apps and APIs, he noted.