Imperva > Case Studies > Automotive Retailer Enhances Website Performance by Blocking Malicious Bots with Imperva Bot Management

Automotive Retailer Enhances Website Performance by Blocking Malicious Bots with Imperva Bot Management

Technology Category

Analytics & Modeling - Data Mining
Analytics & Modeling - Robotic Process Automation (RPA)

Applicable Industries

Automotive
Mining

Applicable Functions

Procurement

Use Cases

Chatbots
Traffic Monitoring

Services

System Integration
Testing & Certification

About The Customer

The customer in this case study is an automotive retailer that operates hundreds of stores and websites. Their online platforms allow customers to research and order products as well as make service appointments. The company was struggling with malicious bot traffic that was causing their nearly 100 web properties to crash frequently. Despite having multiple firewalls and other mechanisms in place, they were unable to effectively block the bad bots. The company was also struggling with managing blacklists and whitelists, which was proving to be an administrative nightmare. The situation was so severe that it was consuming the equivalent of one full-time employee (FTE).

The Challenge

The automotive retailer, operating hundreds of stores and websites, was facing a significant challenge with malicious bot traffic. Despite having multiple firewalls, appliances, and other mechanisms for blocking attacks, the company's nearly 100 web properties were frequently crashing due to bad bots attempting to scrape content. The bots were pulling an average of 8,000 pages per second for competitive data mining, causing the sites to crash frequently. The company was also struggling with managing blacklists and whitelists, which was proving to be an administrative nightmare. The situation was so severe that it was consuming the equivalent of one full-time employee (FTE). The company needed a solution that could intelligently block traffic, maintain the same service level from a performance standpoint, integrate seamlessly with their existing complex infrastructure, and work well with their existing monitoring tools.

The Solution

The automotive retailer turned to Imperva Bot Management to tackle their bot problem. Imperva's cloud-based offering was easy to implement and adopt. The company first tested the service on one of their low-traffic websites, and after a successful trial, they implemented a full-blown pilot program. Imperva Bot Management was then used to filter roughly 100 website properties. The solution was able to intelligently block malicious bot traffic while allowing legitimate traffic to pass through. It also integrated seamlessly with the company's existing complex infrastructure and monitoring tools. The solution eliminated the need for the company to manage blacklists and whitelists, freeing up valuable time and resources. It also improved the performance of the company's websites by 25%.

Operational Impact

The implementation of Imperva Bot Management significantly improved the operational efficiency of the automotive retailer. The solution eliminated the 'Whack-a-Mole' approach to bot blocking, saving the company time and hassle. The IT security team was no longer spending a lot of time blocking IP addresses one by one, freeing them up to focus on building the site and expanding the business. The company was able to significantly reduce the need for management of the bot problem, saving one FTE for other development projects. The solution also provided peace of mind to stakeholders through successful proof-of-concept tests, detailed reporting, and the ability to track bad bot origins. The company was able to block malicious bot traffic and still let through customers from countries all over the world.

Quantitative Benefit

Improved site performance by 25%
Saved the equivalent of one full-time employee (FTE) for other development projects
Blocked malicious bot traffic, reducing the frequency of site crashes