Rep. Laurel Lee Introduces Bipartisan Stealth Bot Prohibition Act to Increase Transparency and Combat Deceptive AI Web Crawlers

Rep Laurel Lee (R-FL-15) introduced the bipartisan Stealth Bot Prohibition Act, legislation to establish transparency standards for automated web crawlers and crack down on deceptive bots that conceal their identity while scraping online content. Reps Valerie Foushee (D-NC-04) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL-09) joined Rep. Lee as original co-leads of the legislation. As artificial intelligence continues to transform the digital landscape, automated bots now account for more than half of all global web traffic, with malicious bot activity increasing at an alarming rate. Many AI-powered web crawlers ignore existing industry standards, disguise themselves as human users, or conceal their identities altogether, making it increasingly difficult for website operators across industries to understand who is accessing their systems and how their content is being used. These deceptive practices can increase cybersecurity risks, impose infrastructure costs, and make it more difficult to distinguish legitimate automated activity from malicious actors. The Stealth Bot Prohibition Act requires automated web crawlers to accurately identify themselves and disclose their purpose when accessing websites. It also prohibits deceptive "stealth bots" that intentionally misrepresent their identity or impersonate human users in connection with generative AI services. The legislation authorizes the Federal Trade Commission to enforce these requirements through civil penalties against violators.