Bot Detection & Traffic Quality
SealMetrics employs multiple layers of protection to ensure your analytics data reflects real human visitors, not bots or spam traffic.
Multi-Layer Detection System
Layer 1: IP Blocklist
Known malicious IPs are blocked at the edge:
- Global blocklist — Common bot IPs, data centers, VPN exit nodes
- Per-account blocklist — Custom IPs you want to exclude
- Real-time updates — Blocklist refreshed automatically
Layer 2: User-Agent Filtering
Bot signatures in the User-Agent string are detected:
- Known bot identifiers (Googlebot, Bingbot, etc.)
- Automated tool signatures (curl, wget, python-requests)
- Headless browser patterns (HeadlessChrome, PhantomJS)
Layer 3: Geographic Validation
Traffic from unknown or suspicious locations:
- Missing geo data indicates potential bots
- Data center IP ranges flagged
- Unusual geographic patterns monitored
Layer 4: Behavioral Analysis
Click patterns and timing analysis:
- Inhuman click speeds detected
- Rapid repeated actions blocked
- Session behavior scoring
Layer 5: HMAC Token Validation
Each request includes a cryptographic token:
- Prevents replay attacks
- Validates request authenticity
- Time-bound token expiration
Layer 6: Domain Authorization
Only authorized domains can send data:
- Configure allowed domains in Settings
- Prevents data injection from unauthorized sources
- Subdomain wildcard support
How Bot Traffic is Handled
When bot traffic is detected:
- Blocked immediately — No data stored
- Logged for analysis — Helps improve detection
- Not counted — Never appears in reports
What Gets Filtered
| Traffic Type | Filtered | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Search engine crawlers | Yes | Googlebot, Bingbot, etc. |
| SEO tools | Yes | Ahrefs, Semrush, Moz |
| Uptime monitors | Yes | Pingdom, UptimeRobot |
| Security scanners | Yes | Vulnerability scanners |
| Automated testing | Yes | Selenium, Puppeteer |
| Data center traffic | Yes | AWS, GCP, Azure IPs |
| Known bot networks | Yes | Spam networks |
| Your own test traffic | Configurable | Optional filtering |
What Passes Through
| Traffic Type | Tracked | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Real browsers | Yes | Chrome, Firefox, Safari, etc. |
| Mobile apps | Yes | In-app browsers |
| VPN users | Yes | Legitimate users with VPNs |
| Tor exit nodes | Configurable | Can be filtered if needed |
Agent Detection (Advanced)
For accounts requiring deeper analysis, SealMetrics offers advanced agent detection:
How It Works
- Initial classification — First hit analyzed
- Behavioral signals — Mouse movements, scroll patterns, timing
- Final classification — Human vs. suspected agent
Classification Results
| Classification | Meaning |
|---|---|
human | Confirmed human behavior |
agent_suspected | Automated behavior detected |
unclassified | Insufficient data |
Enabling Agent Detection
Contact support to enable advanced agent detection for your account.
Custom Blocklists
Adding IPs to Blocklist
You can exclude specific IPs via the dashboard:
- Go to Settings → Security
- Select IP Blocklist
- Add IPs or CIDR ranges
192.168.1.100 # Single IP
10.0.0.0/8 # CIDR range
Common Use Cases
- Exclude your office IP
- Block competitor scrapers
- Filter internal testing traffic
User-Agent Blocklist
Block traffic by User-Agent patterns:
- Go to Settings → Security
- Select UA Blocklist
- Add patterns (supports regex)
curl/* # Block curl requests
python-requests/* # Block Python scripts
custom-bot/* # Block specific bot
Data Quality Indicators
In your reports, look for:
- Bounce rate — Extremely high rates may indicate bot traffic
- Session duration — 0-second sessions could be bots
- Geographic distribution — Unusual concentrations warrant investigation
Best Practices
- Review traffic periodically — Check for anomalies
- Use content grouping — Helps identify targeted bot traffic
- Monitor conversion rates — Bots don't convert
- Check referrer sources — Unknown referrers may be spam
Comparison with Other Tools
| Feature | SealMetrics | Google Analytics |
|---|---|---|
| Bot filtering | Multi-layer | Single checkbox |
| Custom blocklists | Yes | Limited |
| Real-time blocking | Yes | Delayed |
| Behavioral analysis | Yes | Limited |
| Transparent filtering | Yes | Black box |