As the capabilities of generative AI continue to expand, so too does the reach of the bots powering it. From ChatGPT to Claude, these models rely on enormous quantities of online content to “learn”. AI crawlers scraping websites, blogs and forums has become the norm… but even your public social media profiles are fair game for hungry bots.
For SMEs, this growing trend presents risks, costs, and—if approached wisely— potential new opportunities.
AI Crawlers Scraping Not Just Your Website
Traditionally, web scraping was something e-commerce firms or shady competitors might do to undercut pricing. Today, however, AI crawlers routinely visit websites to harvest content—text, images, metadata, and more—for use in training large language models (LLMs).
But they don’t stop at your website.
- Public LinkedIn company pages, team bios, and posts are scrapeable.
- YouTube videos (and their transcripts or captions) can be indexed.
- Even public Facebook or Instagram content, like page descriptions and comments, may be picked up by automated agents.
- Twitter/X and Reddit are well-known training sources.
So if your business posts thought leadership, customer reviews, or staff updates on public channels, AI crawlers scraping your content—without your knowledge or permission-is almost certainly happening now.
Security & Privacy Risks to Watch
- Brand reputation exposure: Public-facing posts could end up quoted or rephrased in AI-generated responses.
- Data leakage: Details shared in a public post—e.g. names, internal photos, or comments—could be indexed permanently.
- Identity misuse: Scraped social profiles or web bios could contribute to impersonation or phishing attempts in AI-driven scams.
- Shadow content reuse: Some SMEs have discovered their blog posts or case studies showing up verbatim in AI responses.
What You Can Do Right Now
In the first instance talk to your website developer. They should have suggestions to help protect your content . You need them to ensure your site’s performance is not hindered by AI-crawlers scraping your content. You want it to perform well for genuine (human) visitors. WebDevs might:
- Use
robots.txtto disallow known AI bots (like GPTBot or Google Extended), but be aware this is voluntary. - Implement various methods to filter out unwanted crawler traffic.
- Monitor server logs for unusual spikes that may indicate scraping— to avoid accidental cloud hosting cost blowouts (assuming your hosting fees are based on traffic volume).
On social media you could:
- Audit your pages and posts. Is anything public that shouldn’t be?
- Consider adjusting privacy settings, especially for staff or location-based content.
- Establish internal guidelines for staff who post on behalf of the company, to avoid oversharing.
Turning AI Crawlers Scraping into a Revenue Stream
Despite the risks, there’s good news on the horizon. Major infrastructure providers, such as Cloudflare, are beginning to offer “Pay Per Crawl” models. Others will surely follow suit. It certainly appears fair and reasonable now for AI companies to pay to access content for training purposes (they make so there’s potential to:
- Monetise high value thought leadership content.
- Maintain control over how brand voice and information are used.
- Choose who gets access and under what terms.
You don’t have to choose all-or-nothing though.
You can:
- Block crawlers selectively (e.g., only on blog archives or sensitive pages)
- Track crawler activity to understand who’s scraping what
- Allow AI access to content you want to surface in AI search, such as:
- Service pages
- FAQs
- Public thought leadership
- Monitor developments around AI crawler monetisation, where you may soon be able to charge for access
Final Thought
Remember your business data, thought leadership content and intellectual property are all valuable, and not just to you. AI models are reshaping the digital landscape, and your business’s content is their fuel. Fair or not, AI crawlers scraping content is now the norm. Whether it’s your website, blog, or public social feed, now’s the time to get proactive: lock down what you want protected, and optimise what you want amplified.
It’s not just about defence. With the right strategy, SMEs could now take the opportunity to turn bot traffic—from both websites and social media—into visibility, influence, and ultimately, value.
If you want more information about AI Crawlers and their impact on website performance try here as a starting point. Please be aware – this link is provided in the spirit of the internet. It takes you away from Cosurica’s site. We have no control over the content on third-party websites.
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