Seatext library / BotRefund evidence
How BotRefund's Free Bot Protection Works: Setup, Detection, and Refund Evidence
BotRefund's free bot protection installs with a single script tag in about one minute, requires no credit card or ad-account access, and runs 106 independent behavioral checks in real time to detect non-human traffic...
✓ Built for advertisers who need clear, refund-ready traffic evidence.
BotRefund's free bot protection is a lightweight script you add to your site in roughly one minute. No credit card, no ad-account permissions, and no long-term contract. Once live, it runs 106 independent behavioral checks on every visitor — things like impossible tab speed, robotic mouse paths, superhuman input speed, and honeypot trap interactions — and feeds those signals into an AI model that weighs the full pattern across browser, network, device, and behavior data. The result is a 99% confidence verdict on whether a session is human or automated.
Detected bot sessions are blocked from firing your conversion pixels in real time, so Smart Bidding and Meta's algorithms don't optimize toward fraud. For every flagged click, BotRefund captures the platform click ID (GCLID for Google, FBCLID for Meta) linked to behavioral proof, then packages that evidence into compliance-ready refund reports you can submit through Google and Meta's own invalid-traffic channels. Across filed claims, the approval rate is 83%.
What the free tier includes
- One script tag installation (~1 minute, no credit card)
- Real-time behavioral detection across 106 independent checks
- Conversion pixel protection (Google Ads and Meta Pixel)
- Automatic GCLID/FBCLID capture with behavioral evidence
- Audit-ready refund report generation
- GDPR-aligned data handling
- No ad-account access required
How the detection engine works
BotRefund does not rely on IP blacklists or simple rate limits. Instead, it runs 106 independent checks grouped into behavioral categories. Each check produces a single objective signal — not a verdict. The signals are cross-checked against each other and then weighed by an AI prediction model that evaluates the complete pattern.
Core behavioral signal groups
- Speed behavior: Superhuman input speed (<1ms), VPN detection
- Pointer behavior: Robotic linear mouse movements, absence of humanlike tremor, grid-aligned movement patterns
- Path behavior: Movement that snaps to precise lines or blocks instead of natural curves
- Motion behavior: Missing micro-jitter typical of human movement
- Engagement behavior: Absence of clicks or scrolling, sessions that stay too static
- Session behavior: Unnatural durations — too short, too long, or too uniform
- Trap behavior: Honeypot trap interactions (hidden/deceptive page elements)
- Ghost click detection: Click activity without the natural sequence of human intent
The Impossible Tab Speed check is a representative example. It looks for a timing mismatch that a real browsing session does not normally create. Scripts can send clicks and scrolls, but they struggle to reproduce the varied timing, movement, and hesitation of real people. BotRefund keeps this signal as evidence — not a verdict — and cross-checks it against independent browser, network, device, and behavior data before the AI model issues a final classification.
Step-by-step: Adding free bot protection to your site
- Create a free account on BotRefund (no credit card required).
- Copy the provided script tag — a single line of JavaScript.
- Paste the script into your site's
<head>or via your tag manager (GTM, Tealium, etc.). - Verify the script fires using the BotRefund dashboard's live session view.
- Confirm pixel protection is active — the dashboard shows blocked bot sessions and captured click IDs in real time.
Prerequisite: You must have edit access to your site's header or tag manager. No ad-platform credentials are needed.
What happens after installation
Once the script is live, every visitor session is evaluated in real time. Human sessions pass through unchanged. Bot sessions are identified before they can trigger your conversion pixels, so your Google Ads and Meta Pixel data stays clean. For each flagged session, BotRefund records:
- The platform click ID (GCLID or FBCLID)
- The full behavioral evidence chain (which of the 106 checks fired and how they corroborate)
- Timestamp, device, network, and browser context
This data populates the dashboard where you can review flagged sessions, filter by campaign/placement, and generate refund reports formatted for Google and Meta's dispute portals.
From detection to refund: the evidence chain
Detection alone doesn't recover money. BotRefund bridges the gap by turning behavioral proof into platform-acceptable evidence:
- Real-time block: Bot session prevented from firing conversion pixel.
- Click ID capture: GCLID/FBCLID linked to the session.
- Evidence package: Behavioral signals + context compiled into a structured report.
- Refund filing: You (or BotRefund's team on enterprise plans) submit the report through Google Ads' invalid click report form or Meta's billing dispute flow.
- Platform review: Ad platform evaluates the evidence against their own logs.
- Approval & credit: Approved claims appear as credits on your next invoice.
Across all filed claims, the approval rate is 83%. The free tier gives you the evidence and report generation; managed filing and escalation are part of paid/enterprise plans.
Limitations and what the free tier doesn't cover
- Managed dispute filing: Free tier provides reports; you submit them yourself.
- Enterprise escalation: Direct negotiation with Google/Meta support teams requires a paid plan.
- Historical lookback: Free tier protects forward from install; recovery of past spend (back to 2017) is an enterprise feature.
- Volume caps: Very high-traffic sites may hit free-tier limits; check current thresholds in the dashboard.
- Custom integrations: CRM/webhook exports and advanced segmentation are paid features.
If your monthly Google + Meta spend is under $10K, the free tier often covers full detection and self-service refund needs. Above that, the time savings from managed filing usually justify a paid plan.
Key facts
| Metric | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Installation time | ~1 minute (one script tag) | S2, S7 |
| Credit card required | No | S2, S7 |
| Ad-account access required | No | S7 |
| Independent behavioral checks | 106 | S1 |
| Detection confidence | 99% | S1, S7 |
| Refund claim approval rate | 83% | S2, S7 |
| Data handling | GDPR-aligned | S7 |
| Pixel protection | Google Ads & Meta Pixel (real-time) | S3, S4 |
| Click ID capture | GCLID (Google), FBCLID (Meta) | S3, S4 |
| Report format | Compliance-ready for platform dispute portals | S3, S4 |
FAQ
Does the free tier block bots or just detect them?
It blocks bot sessions from firing your conversion pixels in real time. The script evaluates each session before your pixel loads, so invalid traffic never poisons your conversion data.
Can I use BotRefund alongside Cloudflare Bot Fight Mode or Vercel Bot Protection?
Yes. BotRefund operates at the application layer (browser behavior) while CDN/WAF tools operate at the network layer. They complement each other; BotRefund catches bots that bypass network filters using residential proxies and real browsers.
What if a real user gets flagged as a bot?
The 106-check corroboration model is designed to minimize false positives. A single anomaly (e.g., privacy tool, corporate network) is not a verdict — the AI weighs the full pattern. You can review flagged sessions in the dashboard and whitelist if needed.
How far back can I recover refunds?
Free tier protects from install forward. Enterprise plans can recover Google Ads spend dating back to 2017 by pulling historical click IDs and matching them against stored behavioral evidence.
Is there a traffic limit on the free tier?
BotRefund publishes current free-tier limits in the dashboard. Most sites under $10K/mo ad spend stay within them. High-volume sites should check the dashboard or contact sales.
Do I need to share my Google Ads or Meta login?
No. BotRefund never asks for ad-account credentials. It captures click IDs client-side and you submit the generated reports through the platforms' own dispute forms.
What's the difference between the free bot audit and the free bot protection?
The free bot audit is a one-time live review of your current traffic (booked via a call). Free bot protection is the always-on script you install yourself. The audit helps you size the problem; the protection solves it continuously.
Further reading and comparison sources
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