AI-driven Bot Attacks Surged 12.5x According to Thales Bad Bot Report

Thales today released the 2026 Bad Bot Report: Bad Bots in the Agentic Age, revealing a fundamental shift in how the internet operates, as AI-accelerated automation becomes a defining feature of modern digital infrastructure.

The findings highlight three major structural changes: the emergence of AI agents as a new category of internet traffic, the dominance of automated activity over human interaction, and the rapid expansion of attacks targeting APIs and identity systems that serve as the backbone of digital business.

AI Is Redefining Internet Traffic and Security

The report shows that AI is not just increasing the volume of bot activity, but fundamentally changing its nature. In 2025, AI-driven bot attacks surged 12.5x compared to the previous year.

More significantly, AI agents are now emerging as a third category of traffic, alongside traditional “good” and “bad” bots, interacting directly with applications and APIs to retrieve data and perform tasks ...