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Not all clicks are human. Security scanners, link previewers, and bots can inflate your click metrics. Trackly helps you filter these out.

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The Problem

When you send an SMS with a link, various automated systems may click it: These automated clicks can:
  • Inflate click rates
  • Skew analytics
  • Misattribute conversions

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How Bot Detection Works

Trackly analyzes clicks server-side for bot signatures:
  1. IP / ISP / ASN analysis: Known bot IP ranges and datacenter IPs
  2. User-Agent patterns: Bot-like user agent strings

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Bot Filter Modes

Configure how to handle suspected bots:

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No Filter (Recording Only)

  • Bot classification still runs (UA analysis, IP/ISP/ASN lookup)
  • Detected bots are redirected to the destination immediately, the same as humans
  • Bot clicks are still written to your raw click log, but they never become a unique click, so they don’t affect your reported click metrics or revenue attribution

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Preview Page Filter

  • Only suspected bots see the preview page, which requires a click to continue
  • Humans are redirected directly to the destination, with no extra step
  • Clicks are counted based on bot classification: non-bot clicks count toward your metrics, bot clicks do not

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Configuring Bot Filtering

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Account Level

Set the default for your account:
  1. Go to Account Settings > Link Tracking > Bot Filtering
  2. Select Bot Filter Mode
  3. Save

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Offer Level

Override for specific offers:
  1. Edit the offer
  2. Toggle Advanced Bot Filtering
  3. Save
Offer-level settings override account defaults.

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Preview Page

When using preview page filtering:

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Preview Page Customization

The bot preview page uses a fixed design and is not customizable. For a customizable landing page — with your own title, description, call-to-action, and meta tags — configure an Interstitial Page on the offer instead. An Interstitial Page takes precedence over bot filtering: when one is configured, humans and suspected bots both see it and the bot preview page is never shown.
Preview pages add friction. Use them for high-value offers where accuracy matters most.

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Viewing Bot Data

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In Reports

Reports expose a single, undifferentiated Clicks metric — there is no separate breakdown by bot vs. human click.

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In Exports

Click exports return the raw click log, which still contains clicks classified as bots. Only the unique-click metrics used in reports and revenue attribution exclude them.

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When to Use Each Mode

Best for:
  • Low-stakes tracking
  • When speed matters most
  • Testing and development
  • High-volume, low-value offers

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Bot Detection Signals

We look for:

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Impact on Metrics

Your reported Clicks metric already excludes bot traffic in both modes — a bot click never becomes a unique click. Switching to preview page filtering doesn’t change your reported numbers; it changes what a suspected bot sees before it reaches the destination.

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Best Practices

Bot clicks are excluded from your click metrics in either mode, so start with no_filter and switch only when you need suspected bots stopped before they reach the destination.
Reports don’t break out bot clicks, so there is no bot-rate figure to watch. Choose preview page filtering when you want suspected bots stopped before they reach the destination, not to change your reported numbers.
Ensure the preview page works on various devices before broad deployment.
High-payout offers benefit most from accurate tracking. Low-value may not need it.

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Troubleshooting

Your reported click rate already excludes clicks classified as bots, in both filter modes, so changing the mode won’t lower it.
Check that bot filter mode is set correctly for the offer.
Some VPN users may be flagged. Monitor for patterns and adjust if needed.

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Next Steps

Revenue Attribution

How conversions are tracked

Offers

Manage your offers