What is ArtsdataCrawler?

ArtsdataCrawler is a bot in the content aggregators category, operated by Culture Creates.

Bot name
ArtsdataCrawler
Operator
Culture Creates
Type
Bot
Respects robots.txt
Yes
robots.txt user agent
artsdata-crawler
Signs requests (Web Bot Auth)
Yes

About ArtsdataCrawler

Web crawler that collects publicly available LOD for arts and culture in Canada

Aggregators collect articles and links from many sites to build news feeds, read later apps and discovery services. Some send referral traffic, others republish your content. Check what each one does with your pages before allowing it.

ArtsdataCrawler user agent

ArtsdataCrawler identifies itself with this user agent string:

  • artsdata-crawler

Anyone can copy a user agent string. Transfon Security also checks where each request comes from, so a request that claims to be a known crawler but comes from the wrong network is treated as a fake, not as the real crawler.

How to block ArtsdataCrawler in robots.txt

ArtsdataCrawler follows robots.txt, so these rules stop it crawling the paths you choose. robots.txt is a plain text file at the root of your domain, such as https://example.com/robots.txt.

Block ArtsdataCrawler from the whole site

User-agent: artsdata-crawler
Disallow: /

Block ArtsdataCrawler from some folders

User-agent: artsdata-crawler
Disallow: /private/
Disallow: /search

Allow ArtsdataCrawler only on some folders

User-agent: artsdata-crawler
Allow: /blog/
Disallow: /

Allow ArtsdataCrawler and block other crawlers

User-agent: artsdata-crawler
Allow: /

User-agent: *
Disallow: /

Things to know

  • Each host needs its own file. Rules on www.example.com do not apply to shop.example.com.
  • A crawler obeys only the most specific group that names it. Once you add a User-agent: artsdata-crawler group, ArtsdataCrawler ignores your User-agent: * rules, so repeat any that should still apply.
  • The user agent name is not case sensitive. We take artsdata-crawler from ArtsdataCrawler's user agent; check Culture Creates's own documentation if it publishes a different robots.txt name.
  • Crawlers cache robots.txt, so changes can take up to a day to apply. Disallow stops crawling but does not remove pages already collected or indexed.

Limits of robots.txt

  1. ArtsdataCrawler may not follow the rule. ArtsdataCrawler says it follows robots.txt, but nothing enforces that. Changes can take a day to apply, the operator can change its policy, and other crawlers from Culture Creates use different names and rules.
  2. The user agent could be fake. robots.txt matches the name a request claims. Anyone can send ArtsdataCrawler's user agent, and a scraper using it is not bound by Culture Creates's robots.txt policy. Only checking the source network tells a real ArtsdataCrawler from a fake one.

Treat robots.txt as a statement of your policy, and enforce it where requests arrive.

Who should care about ArtsdataCrawler

Publishers

ArtsdataCrawler fetches pages when your links are shared or syndicated. Keep it allowed so previews and feeds work, but leave it out of page views and ad requests.

Transfon Security for publishers

Media buyers and advertisers

When ads or posts are shared, ArtsdataCrawler fetches the landing page. Those hits are not clicks, so keep them out of campaign reports.

Transfon Security for advertisers

E-commerce

Product links shared in chats and feeds are fetched by ArtsdataCrawler. Keep it allowed so previews show the right image and price.

Transfon Security for e-commerce

SaaS and APIs

Allow ArtsdataCrawler on public pages so shared links preview well, and keep it off the app.

Transfon Security for SaaS and APIs

Block ArtsdataCrawler with Transfon Security

robots.txt is a request, not an enforcement. Transfon Security shows ArtsdataCrawler by name in the Top Bots report, so you can see how often it visits and which pages it reads. Block or allow it with a User Agent rule, or slow it down with a rate limit decision rule.

Transfon Security

Control ArtsdataCrawler on your site

  • See every ArtsdataCrawler visit and the pages it reads
  • Spot bots that fake trusted crawler names
  • Block, allow or rate limit ArtsdataCrawler with one rule
  • Works with or without robots.txt support

Frequently asked questions

What is ArtsdataCrawler?

ArtsdataCrawler is a bot in the content aggregators category, operated by Culture Creates. Web crawler that collects publicly available LOD for arts and culture in Canada

Does ArtsdataCrawler respect robots.txt?

Yes. ArtsdataCrawler follows robots.txt, so a Disallow rule for the artsdata-crawler user agent stops it from crawling the paths you list.

How do I block ArtsdataCrawler?

Add "User-agent: artsdata-crawler" followed by "Disallow: /" to the robots.txt file at the root of your site. To enforce it, block requests whose user agent contains "artsdata-crawler" at your WAF. In Transfon Security that is one User Agent block rule.

Is robots.txt enough to block ArtsdataCrawler?

No. robots.txt is voluntary, so ArtsdataCrawler may not follow it, and anyone can send ArtsdataCrawler's user agent, so a fake ArtsdataCrawler ignores your rule. Enforce the rule where requests arrive, at your WAF, and check the source network.

Should I block ArtsdataCrawler?

Aggregators collect articles and links from many sites to build news feeds, read later apps and discovery services. Some send referral traffic, others republish your content. Check what each one does with your pages before allowing it.

Related bots

All content aggregators · Full bot directory

See Which Bots Visit Your Site

Transfon Security identifies every bot in this directory in your traffic reports, flags fake search crawlers, and lets you allow, block or rate limit each bot.

Stay ahead of the publishing curve

Privacy, security, monetization, and performance insights. A few emails a month, no spam.

By subscribing you agree to our privacy policy.