Checkout Bots

Checkout bots are automated programs designed to rapidly purchase limited-stock, high-demand items before human buyers can. These bots are commonly used in sneaker drops, GPU sales, and concert ticket releases, where they complete purchases within milliseconds of stock going live. Resellers deploy checkout bots to create artificial scarcity, driving up prices in the secondary market. This results in an unfair advantage where ordinary customers have little to no chance of securing products at retail prices.

Impact

Checkout bots manipulate supply and demand, leading to inflated resale prices that frustrate genuine customers. When high-demand products sell out instantly, real buyers feel cheated, harming brand perception. Retailers may also face customer backlash, negative press, and increased support inquiries due to widespread dissatisfaction. Additionally, checkout bots can overload e-commerce platforms, causing crashes and slowdowns that impact legitimate shoppers. Some businesses risk violating fair trading laws if bot-driven purchases result in anti-consumer practices.

Example

During a Nike or Adidas sneaker release, checkout bots flood the retailer’s website, purchasing thousands of pairs within seconds. Human buyers attempting to complete their purchase find the product out of stock immediately. These sneakers then appear on resale platforms at several times the original price, making it nearly impossible for everyday consumers to buy at retail. Similar tactics are used for concert tickets, where bots secure seats and resellers list them at extreme markups.

Mitigation

To combat checkout bots, retailers implement bot detection, CAPTCHA challenges, and queue-based purchasing systems. Some companies restrict purchases to verified users or use lottery-based sales to ensure fairness. Rate limiting and traffic fingerprinting help detect and block automated purchase attempts. Payment verification methods, such as multi-factor authentication (MFA) and purchase limits per customer, further reduce the effectiveness of checkout bots.