> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.hockeystack.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.hockeystack.com/technical-details/tracking/identifying-users/about-bot-traffic.md).

# Bot Traffic

Analytics tools should be able to differentiate between real traffic vs bot traffic. At HockeyStack, we make this possible through three different methods:

### `navigator.webdriver` <a href="#block-49041e96a8e34e59882c32d0d40cad6b" id="block-49041e96a8e34e59882c32d0d40cad6b"></a>

This is not the most robust method, but it is the easiest to explain. Webdrivers control browsers remotely and act like real users to perform a variety of tasks, rangin from simple automations to data crawling. By default, they should enable this variable in the `navigator` object, so we check it to eliminate possible bot traffic.

### IP Address <a href="#block-394c80278c26442ebbbcc8363451f867" id="block-394c80278c26442ebbbcc8363451f867"></a>

This is a lot more common. Most crawlers and performance tools have specific IP adresses that they reach their website from. We keep and update a list of those in order to recognize the traffic. Keep in mind that we don't store any tracked IP addresses, and these are just deleted once a response has been sent from the server.

### User-Agent <a href="#block-46d0990c95734db5a765b5fd657ffff8" id="block-46d0990c95734db5a765b5fd657ffff8"></a>

Very much like IP addresses, we store a list of terms that bot traffic insert to their user agents. This is updated the most frequently and is checked first on the browser-side in order to prevent any requests being sent to our servers.

If you suspect that HockeyStack is not able to detect a certain bot, we are more than happy to update our lists! Just write us through the live support chat or send an email to <hello@hockeystack.com>.


---

# Agent Instructions
This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com.

## Querying This Documentation
If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the following URL with the `ask` and `goal` query parameters:

```
GET https://docs.hockeystack.com/technical-details/tracking/identifying-users/about-bot-traffic.md?ask=<question>&goal=<user_goal>
```

`ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
`goal` is what the user is ultimately trying to achieve, the reason they need the answer. Sharing it helps GitBook give you a better, more relevant answer. A goal is most helpful when it describes the outcome the user wants rather than restating the question. For example, with `ask=how do I create an API token`, a goal like `automate deployments from our CI pipeline` lets GitBook tailor the answer to that use case.

The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.
