The long wave of the pandemic and the non-human web
In 2021, the world didn't go back. The e-commerce boom triggered by the 2020 lockdowns became a permanent habit. This turned the internet into a definitive global hunting ground for ad fraud, revealing a disturbing statistic: nearly half of global web traffic was no longer human.
Web Traffic Composition (2021)
Source: Imperva Bad Bot Report 2021
The Quantum Leap of Bots
Forced digitalization injected massive unprotected capital into ad networks. Damage estimates soared, pushing criminals to perfect their software.
In 2021, we witnessed the birth of 'Second Generation Bots': scripts capable of delaying clicks to simulate reading time and navigating site pages to fool Analytics.
The Three Main Threats of 2021
- Scalper Bots: Ultra-fast bots initially used to hoard PS5s, repurposed to massively click on competitor ads and drain budgets.
- Distributed Click-farms: No large warehouses, but thousands of remote-controlled smartphones in real users' pockets, infected via fake apps.
- Competitive Scraping: Bots used to extract thousands of prices per second from rival e-commerce sites, distorting conversion metrics.
The Illusion of Conversions
Ad platforms reported excellent click-through rates (CTR) for small business campaigns, giving the illusion of successful marketing.
The reality was that SMEs were paying dearly to interact with machines, setting the stage for the impending residential proxy disaster.