Re: bots causing downloads…
Just to recap, since some still have to yet grasp this.
for the record, I’m explaining this based on FACT – not my opinion.
Also, please keep in mind that I am not trying to sell you on how this works – this MAY or MAY NOT be the reason for the inflated clicks & downloads… I am merely trying to help you understand how this can happen and why it is worth considering as a possible culprit for the inflated clicks/downloads.
Maybe it will help if I explain first how it might work the way some of you guys are thinking – keep in mind I have been trying to explain that is possible … not that it is always the case.
Here goes:
Some download links call webinstallers which prompt for an email address … it is likely in this situation that once the user submits the email address via the webinstaller dialog box they the webinstaller calls the query/sp to increment the download count – in this situation a SE BOT could NOT cause a download … because the bot isn’t going enter an email address and click submit.
However, as I have been saying … depending on the web installer – you guessed it, one that doesn’t have an interactive aspect to it (like asking for an email address), CAN cause an increment in the started download. So, to reiterate, bot follows download link … download script increments counter … then starts to send .exe.
Hope this helps 