U.S. Representatives Introduce Stealth Bot Prohibition Act to Combat Malicious Online Bots
U.S. Representatives Laurel Lee (FL-15), Valerie Foushee (NC-4), and Gus Bilirakis (FL-12) have introduced the Stealth Bot Prohibition Act, a bipartisan piece of legislation aimed at increasing transparency regarding online bots. The proposed act would require 'bad bots' to disclose their identity and purpose, providing content providers with the necessary information to protect their work. This initiative comes as news publishers and other online content creators face significant challenges from automated crawlers that disguise their identity, consume content, and often lead to increased operational costs and reduced website performance. The legislation seeks to offer a common-sense solution to a widespread problem affecting various sectors of the internet, including web archives, libraries, health and financial institutions, and even responsible AI companies. 
