What is WPTimeCapsule?

WPTimeCapsule is a bot in the webhook senders category, operated by WP Time Capsule.

Bot name
WPTimeCapsule
Operator
WP Time Capsule
Type
Bot
Respects robots.txt
Not confirmed
robots.txt user agent
WPTimeCapsule
Signs requests (Web Bot Auth)
No

About WPTimeCapsule

Our plugin WPTimeCapsule is installed in more 30000 WordPress sites. When our backup servers send requests to trigger the backup on the WordPress sites, it is being blocked

Webhook senders call your endpoints to deliver events from payment, messaging and SaaS platforms. Blocking them breaks integrations. Allow them on the webhook paths they need and nowhere else.

WPTimeCapsule user agent

WPTimeCapsule identifies itself with this user agent string:

  • WP Time Capsule API/1.0 ( https://cron.wptimecapsule.com/; https://service.wptimecapsule.com/ )

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 WPTimeCapsule in robots.txt

We have not confirmed whether WPTimeCapsule follows robots.txt. Add a rule, then check your logs to see that it stopped. robots.txt is a plain text file at the root of your domain, such as https://example.com/robots.txt.

Block WPTimeCapsule from the whole site

User-agent: WPTimeCapsule
Disallow: /

Block WPTimeCapsule from some folders

User-agent: WPTimeCapsule
Disallow: /private/
Disallow: /search

Allow WPTimeCapsule only on some folders

User-agent: WPTimeCapsule
Allow: /blog/
Disallow: /

Allow WPTimeCapsule and block other crawlers

User-agent: WPTimeCapsule
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: WPTimeCapsule group, WPTimeCapsule ignores your User-agent: * rules, so repeat any that should still apply.
  • The user agent name is not case sensitive. We take WPTimeCapsule from WPTimeCapsule's user agent; check WP Time Capsule'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. WPTimeCapsule may not follow the rule. robots.txt is a request that nothing enforces, and we have not confirmed that WPTimeCapsule follows it. Check your logs after adding a rule.
  2. The user agent could be fake. robots.txt matches the name a request claims. Anyone can send WPTimeCapsule's user agent, and a scraper using it is not bound by WP Time Capsule's robots.txt policy. Only checking the source network tells a real WPTimeCapsule from a fake one.

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

Who should care about WPTimeCapsule

Publishers

Allow WPTimeCapsule if it is a service you use, and keep its visits out of page views and ad requests either way.

Transfon Security for publishers

Media buyers and advertisers

WPTimeCapsule is not a person. Exclude it from campaign and conversion data so reports reflect real visitors.

Transfon Security for advertisers

E-commerce

Allow WPTimeCapsule only if it works for your store, and keep it away from cart and checkout.

Transfon Security for e-commerce

SaaS and APIs

If WPTimeCapsule is a service you use, allow it on the endpoints it needs and block it elsewhere.

Transfon Security for SaaS and APIs

Block WPTimeCapsule with Transfon Security

robots.txt is a request, not an enforcement. Transfon Security shows WPTimeCapsule 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 WPTimeCapsule on your site

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

Frequently asked questions

What is WPTimeCapsule?

WPTimeCapsule is a bot in the webhook senders category, operated by WP Time Capsule. Our plugin WPTimeCapsule is installed in more 30000 WordPress sites. When our backup servers send requests to trigger the backup on the WordPress sites, it is being blocked

Does WPTimeCapsule respect robots.txt?

We have not confirmed whether WPTimeCapsule follows robots.txt. Add a robots.txt rule, then check your logs to see that it stopped, and block it by user agent if it did not.

How do I block WPTimeCapsule?

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

Is robots.txt enough to block WPTimeCapsule?

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

Should I block WPTimeCapsule?

Webhook senders call your endpoints to deliver events from payment, messaging and SaaS platforms. Blocking them breaks integrations. Allow them on the webhook paths they need and nowhere else.

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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.

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