Bot Traffic Detection Checklist (Free Guide)

Basic Indicators​

• Sudden spike in clicks without any increase in conversions
• Multiple clicks coming from the same IP address
• Extremely low session duration (1–2 seconds)

Advanced Signals​

• Traffic coming from data center IPs (AWS, DigitalOcean, etc.)
• Suspicious or inconsistent user-agent strings
• No real interaction (no scrolling, no mouse movement)

What You Should Track​

• IP address
• User-agent
• Device type
• Timestamp

Common Red Flags​

• High CTR but zero ROI
• Traffic from unexpected or irrelevant locations
• Repeated patterns at fixed intervals

cromie said:

One of the biggest problems in paid advertising today is fake clicks and bot traffic. Many advertisers lose a significant portion of their budget without even realizing it.

I wanted to share a simple checklist that has helped me identify suspicious traffic more effectively:

Basic Indicators​

• Sudden spike in clicks without any increase in conversions
• Multiple clicks coming from the same IP address
• Extremely low session duration (1–2 seconds)

Advanced Signals​

• Traffic coming from data center IPs (AWS, DigitalOcean, etc.)
• Suspicious or inconsistent user-agent strings
• No real interaction (no scrolling, no mouse movement)

What You Should Track​

• IP address
• User-agent
• Device type
• Timestamp

Common Red Flags​

• High CTR but zero ROI
• Traffic from unexpected or irrelevant locations
• Repeated patterns at fixed intervals

Managing all of this manually can get overwhelming pretty quickly. I started the same way before eventually automating parts of the process.
If anyone needs help setting this up or improving their tracking, feel free to ask.

Click to expand...

cromie said:

One of the biggest problems in paid advertising today is fake clicks and bot traffic. Many advertisers lose a significant portion of their budget without even realizing it.

I wanted to share a simple checklist that has helped me identify suspicious traffic more effectively:

Basic Indicators​

• Sudden spike in clicks without any increase in conversions
• Multiple clicks coming from the same IP address
• Extremely low session duration (1–2 seconds)

Advanced Signals​

• Traffic coming from data center IPs (AWS, DigitalOcean, etc.)
• Suspicious or inconsistent user-agent strings
• No real interaction (no scrolling, no mouse movement)

What You Should Track​

• IP address
• User-agent
• Device type
• Timestamp

Common Red Flags​

• High CTR but zero ROI
• Traffic from unexpected or irrelevant locations
• Repeated patterns at fixed intervals

Managing all of this manually can get overwhelming pretty quickly. I started the same way before eventually automating parts of the process.
If anyone needs help setting this up or improving their tracking, feel free to ask.

Click to expand...

Nataliahedge said:

This is really eye-opening honestly. I knew bot traffic was a thing but I didn't realize how much of it you could actually catch just by knowing what to look for. The "high CTR but zero ROI" one especially I would've just assumed my offer was bad and kept tweaking the wrong thing.

Click to expand...