Patent ID: 8903986

Claim:
A computer implemented method for identifying requests to access URLs that are made automatically by processes, the method comprising the steps of: monitoring, by a computer, outbound network traffic originating from a client computer; detecting requests to access URLs in the outbound network traffic, by a computer; comparing a plurality of rules to detected requests to access URLs, by a computer, in order to determine whether specific ones of the detected requests were initiated automatically by at least one computerized process as opposed to manually by a human user; responsive to a rule of the plurality applying to a specific detected request, adjusting a rating concerning the specific detected request, by a computer, the rating indicating a likelihood as to whether the specific detected request was initiated automatically; categorizing, by a computer, some detected requests to access URLs as being initiated automatically, responsive to an associated rating indicating a likelihood as to whether the request was initiated automatically; categorizing, by a computer, some detected requests to access URLs as being initiated manually by a human user, responsive to an associated rating indicating a likelihood as to whether the request was initiated automatically; and at client side, logging, by a computer, only human user activity of interest comprising requests categorized as being manually initiated by the human user, while avoiding logging of information that is superfluous to monitoring of the human user.