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Someone is running mass vulnerability scans, spoofing AI bots like ClaudeBot

The Agentic Web Index: AI Bot Traffic Statistics | Known Agents

knownagents.com

August 12, 2026

21 min read

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62/100

Summary

The Agentic Web Index reports that bot traffic has decreased by 2% compared to the previous 90 days, while AI-related bot traffic has increased by 11%. AI agents utilize web browsers to autonomously complete complex tasks, while AI assistants fetch website content in response to user prompts.

Key Takeaways

Bot traffic has decreased by 2% compared to the previous 90 days, while AI-related bot traffic has increased by 11% in the same timeframe.
The most active bot types include bingbot (8.2%), Googlebot (7.9%), and AhrefsBot (6.2%).
Various AI agents serve distinct functions, such as AI Assistants fetching content and AI Data Scrapers downloading website data for training AI models.
The article categorizes different types of AI agents, including Automated Agents, Intelligence Gatherers, and Security Scanners, each with specific roles in web interaction.

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Coverage & discussions

Hacker News · knownagents.com

Someone is running mass vulnerability scans, spoofing AI bots like ClaudeBot ↗

Community discussions

Hacker News discussion ↗

Historical count: 5 · 5 saved in sample · Historical sample

Analysis ready

Community Sentiment

Mixed

Positives

The surge in bot traffic is a reminder of how valuable AI tools have become; businesses want that data flowing in, not blocked.
Some commenters are noting that the creativity behind spoofing AI bots shows a new layer of sophistication in web traffic management.

Concerns

Pretending to be an AI bot seems counterproductive and raises questions about the motivations behind this tactic; it could just be making AI companies look worse.
There's a clear frustration over the ongoing issue of mass vulnerability scans; it's like a never-ending battle against the same old junk traffic.