DuckAssistBot: what this bot is and how to allow or block it
DuckAssistBot is a search bot from DuckDuckGo: it finds and reads pages so that DuckAssist can find your site and cite it in answers. Block it and your site drops out of those answers.
DuckAssistBot User-Agent
DuckDuckGo publishes the full User-Agent string in the bot's documentation. In robots.txt the token DuckAssistBot is enough.
How to allow DuckAssistBot
Add this group to robots.txt at the site root. Close service sections in the same group: a bot with its own group does not read the «User-agent: *» rules.
User-agent: DuckAssistBot Allow: /
robots.txt is not everything. If your site uses Cloudflare or other bot protection, it may serve DuckAssistBot a 403 error or a challenge page even when robots.txt allows everything.
How to block DuckAssistBot
To block the whole site, add the group below to robots.txt. The rule works for bots that respect robots.txt.
User-agent: DuckAssistBot Disallow: /
What happens if you block DuckAssistBot
DuckAssist will stop finding and reading your pages: your site will not appear in answers with search, and the assistant will not link to it.
How to check whether DuckAssistBot visits your site
Search the web server logs for the token. The User-Agent string is easy to fake, so to be sure, check the IP address against the ranges if DuckDuckGo publishes them.
grep "DuckAssistBot" /var/log/nginx/access.log
Does your site let DuckAssistBot in
Free 15-second check: we read your robots.txt and request your site as AI bots — you see which ones the server and bot protection let in and which they block.
Questions and answers
Should I block DuckAssistBot?
No, if you want DuckAssist to find and recommend your site. Blocking search bots only makes sense for pages that should not appear in answers.
How do I know whether DuckAssistBot visits my site?
Search the web server logs for the token. The User-Agent string is easy to fake, so to be sure, check the IP address against the ranges if DuckDuckGo publishes them.
Is it enough to allow DuckAssistBot in robots.txt?
robots.txt is not everything. If your site uses Cloudflare or other bot protection, it may serve DuckAssistBot a 403 error or a challenge page even when robots.txt allows everything.