Content scraping, also known as web scraping, occurs when automated bots download content from a website without the owner’s consent, quickly retrieving all or most of the website’s information. Content scraping is often used for malicious purposes, such as duplicating content for SEO on the attacker’s own websites, violating copyrights, and stealing organic traffic. It can also lead to the submission of junk data in a company’s database and consume server resources that could be better utilized by human users.
Bots scrape content by sending multiple HTTP GET requests and saving the information received from the web server. Advanced scraper bots can even utilize JavaScript to interact with forms and access gated content. These bots simulate human behavior using browser automation programs and APIs, deceiving servers into thinking they are genuine users. Manual copying and pasting of a website is possible, but bots offer much faster and more efficient scraping capabilities, even for large websites with numerous pages.
Content scraping bots target various types of publicly available content, including text, images, HTML code, CSS code, and more. Attackers exploit the scraped data for different purposes, such as reusing text to steal search engine rankings or deceive users. HTML and CSS code can be used to mimic legitimate websites or other companies’ branding. Stolen content is also utilized to create phishing websites that trick users into providing personal information under the guise of legitimate platforms.
Apart from content scraping, other types of web scraping include contact scraping, which involves extracting contact information like phone numbers and emails, and price scraping, where one company downloads pricing data from a competitor’s website to adjust their own pricing strategy accordingly. To prevent web scraping, companies can employ Bot Management solutions that utilize machine learning to identify and mitigate scraping activities. Rate limiting, which restricts the number of requests a user can make within a specific timeframe, can also deter scraping. Additionally, CAPTCHA challenges can help differentiate bots from real users. These solutions can help protect a website’s content and data from malicious attacks.
Looking to learn more? We suggest heading over to Cloudflare’s Learning Center for an in-depth look at about content scraping.
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