# Understanding bot detection in message statistics. How to exclude bots?

This article explains a feature that is being released gradually and might not be available in all accounts.

If you don’t have access to it but would like to use it, [let our Customer Success Team know](https://www.getresponse.com/features/support) to add you to the waitlist.

If you’ve noticed unusually high open or click rates in your email campaigns that don’t seem to match the actual engagement or conversions – bots could be the reason.

Bots, crawlers, and automated tools often scan emails for security, anti-phishing checks, or preview generation. While these tools serve legitimate purposes, they can falsely inflate open and click statistics in your email reports. As a result, your campaign metrics may not accurately reflect real user engagement, leading to:

*   Misleading open and click rates
*   Inefficient marketing automation triggers based on false interactions
*   Overestimated engagement scores
*   Inaccurate contact behavior segmentation

GetResponse Bot Detection
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To help you regain confidence in your email performance data, GetResponse has introduced Bot Detection – an intelligent filtering mechanism that differentiates human interactions from bot-generated activity in your message statistics.

By analyzing multiple signals, such as the internet service provider (ISP), IP address, and the device’s User-Agent, our system flags opens and clicks that are likely caused by non-human activity. These flagged interactions can then be excluded from your message reports, giving you a much clearer and more reliable view of how your audience actually engages with your emails.

How to exclude bots from message statistics
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To disable bot/fake interactions, on the **report page** (regardless of whether you are viewing the report for a specific message or for multiple/all messages), toggle the switch next to **Exclude bot interactions and Apple Privacy opens**, which can be found at the top of the page.

![Image showing a message report with bot detector enabled](https://us-wd.gr-cdn.com/help/sites/9/2026/02/1142/CleanShot-2026-02-03-at-12.42.07-2x.png)

How Bot Detection impacts your reports and business outcomes
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When Bot Detection is enabled:

*   **Your open and click rates will reflect human interactions only.** In most cases, this results in lower but more accurate percentages – eliminating the noise from automated scanners.
*   **Click maps will show a more realistic distribution of link interactions**, typically with higher concentration around call-to-action buttons and prominent links.

Accurate data drives better decisions. With Bot Detection:

*   You’ll have a clearer understanding of how your content performs.
*   Your marketing automation becomes more targeted and efficient, avoiding unnecessary follow-ups triggered by bots.
*   Your deliverability team can better assess the actual impact of your campaigns on inbox placement.
*   Your performance tracking aligns more closely with external analytics platforms like Google Analytics.

Summary of differences: before vs. after enabling Bot Detection
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Metric

Without Bot Detection

With Bot Detection

Open Rate

Artificially inflated

More accurate, human-only

Click Rate

Skewed by automated clicks

Reflects real user interest

Click Maps

Spread evenly, many false clicks

Focused on CTA and real links

Engagement Score

Overestimated

Reliable