How to Block Spam Traffic in Google Analytics (Using Segments and Filters)

Spam traffic is more than just annoying, it can be a serious security and performance risk to your small business website too. This isn’t just a problem for large companies and big business websites, it’s a common plague for small business websites as well. As a small business owner, you need to take the time to review your website and Analytics data to make sure you’re not dealing with any harmful spam traffic.

Not sure where to start? Don’t worry, in this article we’ll discuss how to block spam traffic in Google Analytics step by step!

Getting to Know the Basics

Most people are familiar on some level with what spam traffic is. The most common form of spam traffic is referrer spam where the spammer repeatedly visits your website and sends traffic to it using a URL they want to drive traffic to. Another common form of spam is spam bot traffic. So what is spam bot traffic? It is non-human (robot) traffic that is meant to collect information about your site and send fake traffic to it.

So what’s the big deal? Well, these types of spam traffic can have negative effects on your small business website and how you’re able to analyze your data.

Spam traffic can:

Skew the measurement of your website traffic performance to make it look like your site is performing better than it is
If there is enough of this spam, it can hurt the performance of your site by slowing it down
It can create a security risk because the spam bots are looking for vulnerabilities in your site

If your small business website is getting hit with large amounts of referral spam and spam bot traffic, you won’t be able to properly analyze how your website is performing.

But, how can you tell if you’re getting hit with large amounts of spam? Well, I’m glad you asked!

How to Tell if Your Website Has Spam Traffic

At Cazbah, our dedicated IMCs (internet marketing consultants) regularly and routinely monitor each of their specific client’s Analytics data so they can be on top of potential spam threats before they even occur. However, if you’re monitoring your Analytics data yourself, you need to be vigilant about regularly tracking and recording your traffic data.

Run of the mill spam traffic will most likely show up in the Referral Traffic section of your Google Analytics, but it can show up in other areas as well. Spam bot traffic will show up in the Direct Traffic section of your Google Analytics. You need to monitor all sections of your traffic data. If you notice any unusual activity for your website, like a random traffic spike or an unusual amount of traffic coming from a country that you don’t advertise or work in, you’re website is probably getting spammed.

If you’re searching through your traffic reports, but aren’t sure if a URL is spam or real, you can do a Google search to see it anything comes up. Most of the time, popular spam URLs will be known and people will complain and comment about them online, so you’ll be able to tell easily.

How to Segment Out Referral Spam in Google Analytics

Once you figure out that you do have spam traffic coming to your website, you need to do something about it!

So how can you block spam traffic in Google Analytics to prevent problems with your website?

First, you need to determine the amount of referral spam traffic coming to your small business website. If there isn’t a lot of spam traffic that you’re seeing, then creating a segment in Google Analytics that excludes that spam traffic should do the trick. A “segment” is a specific subset of your Google Analytics data and allows you to either exclude or view sections of data you want to target.

Here’s how to create a new segment in Google Analytics to exclude referral spam:

1. Go to “Acquisition” on the left hand navigation, select “All Traffic”, and then click “Channels”

2. In the window that appears, click on the “Secondary dimension” box. Type in “Source/ Medium” and select it

3. At the top of the page, click “Add Segment” and click “+ New Segment”. Name the segment something descriptive so you’ll remember what it is

4. Select “Conditions” in the left hand side navigation and a new window will appear

5. Select the drop down menu under “Ad Content”. Select “Behavior” and then scroll down and select “Hostname”

6. In the second drop down box, select “matches regex”

7. In the last box, copy and paste this in:*

offer|free\|share\|mercedes|buy|cheap|googlsucks|benz|sl500|hulfington|buttons|darodar|pistonheads|motor|money|blackhat|backlink|webrank|seo|phd|crawler|anonymous|\d{3}.*forum|porn|webmaster|flipboard|fl\.ru|m

After you paste that in, click “OR”

8. Again, set the corresponding drop down boxes to “Hostname” and “matches regex” like before. In the text box, copy and paste this in:*

9. Repeat the process and then copy and paste this in:*

10. Repeat the process again and then copy and paste this in:*

You now have created a new segment to view your data! You can apply this filter to your traffic data to make sure you get more accurate results.

*these scripts were created by Brian Clifton and Neil Patel as a way to easily target common referral spam URLs. Most referral spam traffic will come from URLs including these phrases and words.

How to Filter Spam Bot Traffic in Google Analytics

Dealing with spam bot traffic is a little easier and Google Analytics actually has an extremely user-friendly method to deal with it.

Here’s an easy way to filter out spam bot traffic in Google Analytics:

1. Go to the “Admin” section of your Google Analytics account and scroll over the the “View” section

2. Click on “View Settings”

3. Scroll until you see “Bot Filtering” and check the box that says “Exclude all hits from known bots and spiders”. Then scroll all the way down and click “Save”.

Just so you know, by selecting to automatically exclude spam bot and spider traffic, you won’t be able to see where the spam bot and spider traffic is coming from. You may see a significant decline in your website traffic, but this is normal if your site is receiving a lot of theses type of spam.

Some recommend that you create an Analytics filter to permanently remove spam traffic from your Analytics data. Their are a few concerns I have with this method. First, there’s no way to remove spam traffic going back in time, so past data will still remain skewed. Second, if you automatically eliminate the spam traffic from showing up in your Analytics, you won’t know if your spam traffic levels are improving or declining. And third, creating a spam filter requires consistent monitoring and updating. There will always be new spam sites out there, so you’ll need to update your spam filter with those new URLs and IPs regularly.

However, if you are interested in creating a filter to remove your spam traffic, I would encourage you to seek out the opinion of a Google Analytics expert first, if you’re not one yourself.

In Conclusion

Spam can be a real threat to critical website success metrics like referral and direct traffic, so you need to learn how to block spam traffic in Google Analytics if you want accurate data. Don’t think your website is safe from web spam just because you’re a small business. Spammers don’t care what size company you are! Make sure you’re regularly checking and monitoring your Google Analytics traffic to watch for suspicious data numbers. If you don’t want to go it alone, work with an Internet Marketing professional and make sure they have an attack plan to keep your small business website safe.

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4.7

Cazbah

NOVAIR USA Corp

18:52 16 Nov 23

We at NOVAIR USA are very pleased in our experience with Dan Kunz, Internet Marketing Consultant at Cazbah. Dan worked tirelessly with us, and with his team, to find solutions to many of our difficult problems as we went through an international corporate takeover with global expansion, a full rebrand, complete systems overhaul, integration of salesforce/hubspot/zoominfo and many other tools over the past year...all of which would have been very disruptive if it weren't for Dan and his team constantly finding satisfactory solutions. We are forever grateful.

Gene Waltz

19:21 29 Sep 23

Cazbah did a great job learning our business so they could create and evolve a website that delivered results. Their approach and process helped our business have the discipline to make our website a dynamic tool supporting our marketing and sales efforts. They also focus on quantifying the results of their efforts. The hits, clicks, and prospect time on our website increased dramatically as a direct result of Cazbah's expertise!

Adam Curtin

19:50 13 Sep 23

Monroe Extinguisher Company and Monroe Kitchen Equipment have been customers of Cazbah for close to 20 years. They helped us upgrade our websites from PDF-centric sites, and then they helped us evolve to have E-Commerce. Kennedy is our account manager and she has done a fantastic job pushing us to create content and constantly updating our websites. Matt Smith and Olivia Broersma have also helped us with managing our sites and creating content. Keep up the good work!

David Nathan

20:32 11 Sep 23

Cazbah is a great vendor to my former employer. As I moved on to a new opportunity, my desire was to hire Cazbah to help with the website. My project was not a perfect fit. We are on a tight schedule and the website requires a ton of work. Cazbah was open and honest about what the schedule and budget would would need to be. Their honesty is great appreciated. They shared ideas for the best way for me to move forward without them. I believe that this is the sign of a good/honest company. We part as friends and better having known them. Especially Kennedy. She was so helpful in my former role. Creative, timely, open and honest. I hope that I get to work with them again in the future. If your project is a good fit for Cazbah, and you don't use them...you are nuts!

Katherine Curtis

19:34 18 Jul 23

Cazbah has been with us through thick and thin in our journey. Chaz and his team (especially Matt!) set us up beautifully and Kennedy has really taken us to the next level. They hear our requests and give us solutions we didn't even know we needed that have provided results.

Fred Mileham

20:13 29 Mar 23

We have been working with Cazbah for almost 10 years now and they have always been very accessible, hands on and helpful in the design, implementation and ongoing support of our website. The SEO work has been outstanding and we continue to get quality contacts and orders through our site on a daily basis. A++ organization!

Bob Dreske

20:01 08 Mar 23

Cazbah is an excellent website developer. We have been with them for many years. I highly recomend them!

HSE

20:53 12 Apr 22

We have been working with Cazbah for over 7 years. Chaz, Dawn and the Cazbah team do a fantastic job with our website and our online marketing. We are primarily a B2B professional services firm that needs to have a professional online presence that highlights our extensive portfolio and experience. Cazbah did a great job bringing that presence and our high level of visibility to life!

Matt Sones

17:03 05 Apr 22

We have worked with Cazbah for years and have nothing but praise for their fast and knowledgeable efforts on our behalf. Highly recommend!

Jim Harden

14:04 05 Apr 22

Cazbah's total internet marketing solution is exactly what our organization needed. Internet marketing is not like a bill board that one can post and forget. It requires focused attention and a partnership with a team who knows where and how to focus internet activity, generating qualified leads. From targeted ad-word campaign management to developing web page collateral to drive up natural search engine rankings, Cazbah is truly a working partner. Since working with Cazbah our organization increased qualified leads 30% per year and many of our web pages are ranked top three nationally in the industry. We could not be happier. Thank you, to Cazbah and her visionary owner Charles Broersma!

Josefs Artisan Meats

12:27 05 Apr 22

Extremely professional and knowledgeable. Quick to respond to any issues/concerns. A personalized and thoughtful approach that makes you feel like you are their most important client - highly recommend.

Michael Kulzer

15:44 04 Apr 22

Cazbah has been a real pleasure to work with. They have drastically help with our website and created content that has brought more traffic than when we used to do Pay Per Click. They have targeted the right companies that has lead to a more qualified lead than ever before. Highly recommend this service for anyone that want to organically grow their website ranking.

Ken Reasoner

23:06 02 Apr 22

We are active on our Travel website that Cazbah created in 2020, grouptoursinc.com. We update our trips and some of the links on the site ourselves. They've created easy to modify pages with WordPress. If I need help, their Helpdesk is very prompt to respond. We definitely Recommend Cazbah.

LizaJ Bobseine

10:50 22 Feb 22

This company places a huge emphasis on quality customer service. Their staff are extremely responsive, to the point of being startling with how quickly they handle our requests. We are in the early stages of working with them to improve our organic search rankings and I'm hopeful, based on their work ethic and drive that they will produce outstanding results for my business.

Gary Lauchert

17:31 23 Dec 21

Dan has been a tremendous help in designing our website and driving traffic to it. We couldn't be happier with his service and responsiveness!

New Scale Technologies

16:19 09 Dec 21

A great help with keeping our site both user-friendly and optimized for SEO. Excellent Wordpress hosting and development, and so much more. Matt and the team make google ads work for us even with a relatively small budget, complex product, and narrow B2B audience. Back-end support is fast and effective! Very responsive to our requests for more features, too.

Simon Appler

15:24 28 Jul 21

Worked at an internship this summer, and my company worked with them for a website update. They did a very nice job, were quick to respond, and were open to support form me, not getting angry for overstepping! Would reccomend!

Christopher Galayda

14:30 24 Jul 21

Extremely knowledgeable and the best at what they do!

Richard Wand

22:31 15 May 19

Mike Zaccaria has gotten our website consistently better performance with his direction and guidance!

Glenn Jackling

16:34 13 Mar 19

Working with Cazbah has given us the opportunity to improve our website and overall web presence. With a dedicated account manager, we get personalized insights and recommendations through every stage of the process. They have been a great resource for our marketing team, and provide support on a number of digital marketing initiatives. I would recommend Cazbah to anyone in need of improving their website and overall digital presence.

Phil Roser

17:10 20 Mar 18

Cazbah has been doing and awesome job for us. Mike Ingersoll is great to work with and he knows his stuff and gets it done.

Showmark LLC

15:14 22 Jan 18

Cazbah has become a key part of our Marketing Team. Their professionals are always on top of the ever changing requirements and methods needed to have an effective online presence. They constantly give us new ideas for our website and push us into other social media campaigns with positive results that are reflected in our sales.

T lucas

14:38 21 Dec 17

Attentive, proactive and on point. when issues arise they are responsive and rectify them quickly. Lots of analytics, good customer service , solid marketing partner for multiple years.

Stef Cappel

15:49 19 Dec 17

Our family-owned-and-operated stores have been in business since 1945. Our evolution to include internet services began in 2004. We started working with Cazbah in 2009 and have remained a customer ever since. As in any long-term relationship, there have been a few bumps, but we are thrilled with the service we receive from Jeff and his team. Jeff acts proactively to ensure our site is safe, functional, and profitable and is always willing to respond to issues in a timely manner. I feel like we are a priority for him, even though I know he has many plates to spin! The 5-star rating is based on service, cost, and the return we see on this investment.

Dean Davis

23:24 14 Dec 17

Chaz and his staff are GREAT. Been with this company for going on 10 years. Yes we have had a couple of bumps in the road. No issue though, you call the owner directly and its fixed just like that. They do what they say and then some. A great resource for myself and my company. We keep in constant communication, share ideas and create great results.

Cate Bell

22:46 12 Dec 17

As one of Cazbah's early e-commerce clients we have grown our on-line business and continue to benefit from the team's knowledge, expertise and specific recommendations for driving sales. One of the most beneficial points is their dedicated account manager structure so that at least one experienced professional learns the ins and outs of your business and your web site, features and SEO efforts which means a fast response time when things need to be addressed. Hosting / server reliability have improved over time to be extremely reliable and the rare glitch is quickly addressed and resolved.

Tom Stortz

20:56 12 Dec 17

We have been with Cazbah for over 7 years and they provide us the web based tools for our small business to compete and grow. With their guidance, and our drive to succeed, the relationship continues to get stronger as the years go on. I've not once questioned their professionalism and trust their wisdom from all of their experience. They provide the backbone for our web growth. I would recommend them to small businesses who are looking to get support moving to a more e-commerce company.

Doug Turnbull

15:54 11 Dec 17

Turnbull Restoration has been working with Cazbah for over 10 years now and they have helped to keep us current with our SEO as well as given us incredible input to what works as well as, more importantly what we need to drop in the marketing side for us. Advertising is the single most expensive area that we have (besides labor), and having information to direct the funds in a know manor is a tremendous benefit to Turnbull. Be it print, electronic or promotional they can help you in how you track the various ways you try to get the word out. They are fair in their pricing and I would continue to use them as we move forward with the many promotional and tracking of our advertising projects we have as we continue to grab the top ranked spots on Google searches as well as many other search engines. Doug Turnbull

Roland Vollman

21:51 06 Dec 17

We have been with Cazbah for 9 years and are quite pleased with their knowledge of the web & was does & does not work. Everyone on the Cazbah team is knowledgeable as well as approachable. We will probably staying with Cazbah for the next few years at least.

Garth H McDonald

18:47 06 Dec 17

In today's digital age, sometimes it hard to know where to begin when searching digital solutions such as websites and marketing. Cazbah set themselves apart in some key factors. Taking the time, after a very difficult with a different company we had very specific goals. We shared these goals with our final three candidates. Chaz was the only one that took the time to respond to each goal with specific details on how to meet those. The served us before we were customers. We were in desperate need of High-Resolution Logo's. Mentioning it to Cazbah, they were more than happy to assist us in an extremely quick time frame, at an unbelievable price. Lastly, they delivered on their promises. Its hard to say everything, but I am been impressed at every turn on the quality of service we have been provided. We look forward to our continued partnership and hope that you will too!

David Skeldon

16:03 30 Apr 16

Internet Marketing tactics from Fortune 100 companies, applied to small and medium business. With hundreds of happy companies growing from their marketing and advertising insight and consulting, these guys are a brilliant and innovative team. Looking forward to seeing them help Rochester Boom again!

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How to Block Spam Traffic in Google Analytics (Using Segments and Filters)

Getting to Know the Basics

How to Tell if Your Website Has Spam Traffic

How to Segment Out Referral Spam in Google Analytics

How to Filter Spam Bot Traffic in Google Analytics

In Conclusion

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