A bot (short for "robot") is a computer programme designed to perform automated, often repetitive tasks on a large scale, particularly on the Internet.
Bots can be used for both legitimate and malicious purposes.
According to the latest statistics, bots now account for almost half of all internet traffic worldwidewith the proportion reaching 49.6% in 2023 (source: Thales/Imperva).
π Types of bots
- Malicious bots malware or malicious bots): used by hackers to carry out attacks. They can be grouped into botnetsThe aim is to use large networks of compromised machines to launch coordinated attacks (DDoSspam, data theftetc.).
- Indexing Bots : essential for search engines. They crawl the web to collect and index information about web pages.
- Bots de surveillance : used to monitor websites, social networks, etc., in order to detect problems, changes or threats.
- Trading bots : used in finance to automate stock market transactions.
πΏ Malicious uses of bots
- Attacks by denial of service (DDoS) : server overload with massive request traffic, making the service unavailable.
- Sending spam : massive distribution of unwanted e-mails (advertising, phishingetc.).
- Data theft : recovery of sensitive information (identifiers, passwords, bank details, etc.).
- Malware propagation : distribution of malicious software (virus, Trojan horses, ransomwareetc.).
- Manipulating social networks: creation of false accounts, dissemination of false information, amplification of messages, etc.
