Reddit's new bot ban strategy involves developer labels
Reddit's taking fresh steps to tackle the rise of spammy bots.
Reddit will begin labeling certain automated accounts that provide a service to users with a developer APP label, and suspicious users will have to prove they're actually human.
Otherwise, they could face restrictions.
This move comes as Cloudflare projects that bot-generated traffic across the web will exceed human-generated traffic by 2027.
Reddit's approach to AI-generated content
To spot bots, Reddit's looking at things like posting speed but isn't banning all AI-generated content unless community moderators want it gone.
For verification, you might see options like Apple or Google passkeys or even Face ID, though in places like the United Kingdom and Australia, government IDs could be needed for age checks.
Co-founder Steve Huffman says they're aiming for more transparency while still keeping user identities private.
Looking ahead, Reddit wants future solutions that don't need IDs at all, just better ways to keep conversations real and fun.