13 hours ago
- Complaints about Googlebot overwhelming websites are often misguided because the traffic comes from fake bots impersonating Googlebot.
- The user agent header is a voluntary self-identification that can be easily spoofed by anyone.
- Fake Googlebots are frequently used to bypass bot controls and can be traced to hosting providers like Virtual Machine Solutions LLC.
- To verify a real Googlebot, use reverse DNS lookup or check against Google's published IP ranges.
- Real Googlebot is generally well-behaved, while fake bots are responsible for disruptive traffic.