Bots now make up over half of all internet traffic globally, according to the 2025 Imperva Bad Bot Report. That means more digital activity comes from automated systems than humans. Finance, healthcare, and retail sectors face the biggest risk from “bad bots” designed for fraud and API attacks.
“Automated bots now account for more than half of all web activity,” said Nanhi Singh, General Manager of Application Security at Imperva.
https://ia.acs.org.au/article/2025/more-than-half-of-all-internet-traffic-is-now-bots.html
Fortune’s report confirms that 51 % of global web visits last year originated from bots.
https://www.fortune.com/2025/07/22/is-artificial-intelligence-ai-bubble-bots-over-50-percent-internet/
One rarely noted detail: nearly 72 % of that traffic is considered malicious, up sharply from earlier years. APIs now serve as the primary vector for automated attacks, especially in streaming and travel platforms. The bad bot epidemic has pushed API abuse traffic to nearly 30 % of all attacks.
Businesses quietly absorb inflated analytics, ad fraud, and credential stuffing costs. Investors chase user growth that is increasingly virtual. Platforms tout engagement numbers inflated by bot armies.
Without regulation or better detection, real human metrics will continue to fade. Ad spend and infrastructure investment flow into systems feeding off automation. Expect policy to follow money rather than the other way around.
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