botning

Botning, or botting, refers to the use of automated software or scripts to perform tasks that would normally require human input. In online and computing contexts, it describes programs that operate without ongoing human control to carry out actions such as data collection, interaction with services, or gameplay. The term covers a range of activities, from legitimate automation to harmful abuse.

Common forms of botting include game bots that automate gameplay to farm points or resources, social media bots that create or amplify accounts and spread content, web scraping bots that collect data from web pages, and chatbots that simulate conversation. Another significant category is botnets—networks of compromised devices controlled remotely to execute coordinated tasks, often for malicious purposes. Benign uses exist as well, such as automated software testing, customer support chatbots, monitoring systems, and data collection with proper authorization.

How bots operate varies by context but generally involves scripted sequences of actions, automated requests to servers, and, in some cases, artificial intelligence to imitate human behavior. They may interact with application programming interfaces (APIs), parse responses, and adapt to changing inputs. The deployment of bots can range from lightweight scripts to sophisticated systems that evade basic detection.

Impact of botting is mixed. It can improve efficiency, enable large-scale data analysis, and support automation in development and research. However, it can also enable cheating in games, spamming or fraud on social platforms, illicit data gathering, and disruption of services. In gaming and many online services, botting can violate terms of service and laws.

Detection and defense rely on anti-bot measures such as rate limiting, CAPTCHAs, device and session fingerprinting, behavior analysis, and anomaly detection. Legal and ethical considerations emphasize consent, transparency, and compliance with terms of service and applicable laws.