# Reason Codes Reference

*Event Risk reports* contain *reason codes*, which are standardized identifiers used to explain the cause for a particular action, event or click, depending on the nature of the reason code.

<details>

<summary>Spiders and Bots</summary>

Risk Level: <mark style="color:$danger;">Critical</mark>

**Applies to clicks only.**

A click was generated by an automated web crawler (a'bot) rather than a person. These are software programs that systematically browse the internet to index content for search engines.

The crawler identified itself as non-human in its connection details, so it won't be counted as real user activity.

This type of reason code has an extremely low false positive risk.

</details>

<details>

<summary>Image Click</summary>

Risk level: <mark style="color:$danger;">Critical</mark>

**Applies to clicks only.**

A click was generated as a result of a page or ad loading, without any interaction or intention from a user to click on the link or ad.

Image clicks are usually a malicious attempt to defraud CPC or CPA programs by generating hidden clicks while users browse the internet unknowingly. Rarely, they can result from an innocent bad implementation on a partner’s website, but even then, they still cause misattribution to the partner.

This type of reason code has an extremely low false positive risk.

</details>

<details>

<summary>Data Center</summary>

Risk level: <mark style="color:$danger;">High</mark>

**Applies to both clicks and actions.**

The IP Addresses that the clicks and actions originated from belong to a data center e.g. AWS or Google Cloud.

Clicks and actions with `REF_datacenter` are an action-level reason code. The `REF_` indicates that the action's `REFERRER` is the cause of the risk flag. In this case, the IP address of the `REFERRER` was a data center.

Clicks and actions from data centers can fall into 2 main categories:

* Malicious attempts to defraud your program.
* Innocent clicks that are non-human. These clicks are part of partners inadvertently buying invalid traffic or webscrapers.

This type of reason code has a very low false positive risk. Occasional false positives can result from partners implementing tracking links in an unsupported way (e.g. server side redirects). Partners should [contact support](https://app.impact.com/support/portal.ihtml?createTicket=true&) in these cases.

</details>

<details>

<summary>Request Anomaly</summary>

Risk level: <mark style="color:$danger;">High</mark>

**Applies to clicks only.**

The HTTP request contains signals that indicate non-human activity.

**REF\_request\_anomaly**: The action’s referring click has abnormal request properties.

Actions with `REF_request_anomaly`, particularly without `REF_datacenter`, should be scrutinized closely as this can be an indicator of cookie stuffing.

Similar to *datacenter clicks*, anomalies can fall into 2 main categories:

* Malicious attempts to defraud your program.
* Innocent clicks that are non-human. These clicks are part of partners inadvertently buying invalid traffic or webscrapers.

This reason code type has a very low false positive risk. Occasional false positives can result from unverified loading of clicks in the background in order to maintain a seamless user experience. If a partner has a valid reason use case they should [contact support](https://app.impact.com/support/portal.ihtml?createTicket=true&).

</details>

<details>

<summary>Proxy</summary>

Risk level: <mark style="color:$danger;">High</mark>

**Applies to clicks and actions.**

The IP Address that the click and action originated from is a known proxy.

Clicks and actions originating from *known proxies* are more likely to be malicious in intent, as these IPs are often used to hide the true source of activity. We recommend a careful manual review of any events flagged with this reason code before you approve payouts.

This reason code type has a very low false positive risk.

</details>

<details>

<summary>IP Reputation</summary>

Risk level: <mark style="color:$warning;">Suspect</mark>

**Applies to clicks and actions.**

IP Reputation uses a specialized algorithm to analyze the historical behavior of an IP address. The `REF_` version of the reason code means that the clicks and actions with `REF_ipreputation` were flagged for IP reputation.

By identifying patterns typically associated with fraud, it flags clicks and actions that show a higher risk of malicious intent. We recommend carefully reviewing any events flagged for this reason code before approving payouts.

This reason code type has a low false positive risk.

</details>

<details>

<summary>Domain Reputation</summary>

Risk level: <mark style="color:$danger;">Critical</mark>/<mark style="color:$warning;">Suspect</mark>

**Applies to clicks only.**

Domain Reputation uses a specialized algorithm to analyze activity associated with a specific domain to determine its legitimacy. The `REF_` version of the reason code means that the clicks with `REFERRER` was flagged for domain reputation.

Clicks originating from domains with a poor reputation are more likely to be malicious. We recommend carefully reviewing any events flagged with this reason code before approving payouts.

This reason code type has a low false positive risk. Occasional false positives can result from services holding out-of-date information.

</details>

<details>

<summary>Conversion Spoofing</summary>

Risk level: <mark style="color:$danger;">Critical</mark>/<mark style="color:$warning;">Suspect</mark>

**Applies to actions only.**

A spoofed conversion refers to a fake event or action that never happened. Spoofed conversions are automatically placed into a reversed state, ready for your review in [Review At Risk Actions](/brand/what-would-you-like-to-learn-about/platform-features/protect-and-monitor-your-performance-program/event-risk/review-at-risk-actions.md).

Client-side integrations (like JavaScript) can be vulnerable to bad actors creating fake conversion events in order to receive rewards, either directly via a partner account, or more commonly via the reward scheme of a loyalty/rewards type partner.

To detect spoofed conversions, our system analyzes internal signals alongside your specific `orderId` and conversion URL patterns to ensure every event is genuine.

This reason code type has a medium false positive risk.

</details>


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