01 · Operator
Who operates DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot
- Company
- DuckDuckGo
02 · Behavior
What DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot does
The bot requests favicon images from websites. DuckDuckGo displays these icons in its search results and apps. It fetches small files, so traffic is light.
03 · Impact
Why DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot matters for your site
If you allow it
- Your icon appears in DuckDuckGo results
- Very light traffic
If you block it
- No published verification method for this bot
04 · Allow
How to allow DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot
robots.txt
User-agent: DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot
Allow: /Cloudflare
# Security › WAF › Custom rules › Create rule
Expression: (http.user_agent contains "DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot")
Action: Skip › All Super Bot Fight Mode rules
# Also check Security › Bots: "Block AI bots" can block it regardless of robots.txt.WordPress
# WordPress serves a virtual robots.txt. Edit it with your SEO plugin:
# Yoast: SEO › Tools › File editor · Rank Math: General Settings › Edit robots.txt
User-agent: DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot
Allow: /nginx
# nginx serves every user agent by default.
# Make sure no rule like this blocks it:
# if ($http_user_agent ~* "DuckDuckGo\-Favicons\-Bot") { return 403; }Apache
# Apache serves every user agent by default.
# Make sure .htaccess has no rule like this:
# RewriteCond %{HTTP_USER_AGENT} DuckDuckGo\-Favicons\-Bot [NC]
# RewriteRule .* - [F,L]05 · Block
How to block DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot
Start with robots.txt. If DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot keeps showing up in your logs, block it at your CDN or web server.
robots.txt
User-agent: DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot
Disallow: /Cloudflare
# Security › WAF › Custom rules › Create rule
Expression: (http.user_agent contains "DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot")
Action: BlockWordPress
# WordPress serves a virtual robots.txt. Edit it with your SEO plugin:
# Yoast: SEO › Tools › File editor · Rank Math: General Settings › Edit robots.txt
User-agent: DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot
Disallow: /nginx
# In your server { } block:
if ($http_user_agent ~* "DuckDuckGo\-Favicons\-Bot") {
return 403;
}Apache
# .htaccess
<IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{HTTP_USER_AGENT} DuckDuckGo\-Favicons\-Bot [NC]
RewriteRule .* - [F,L]
</IfModule>06 · User agents
User agents we see for DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot
The user agent published by the operator:
Mozilla/5.0 (compatible; DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot/1.0; +http://duckduckgo.com)07 · Verification
Is it really DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot?
DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot’s operator publishes no IP ranges or hostnames, so requests cannot be verified. Treat the user agent as a claim, and watch your logs for unusual request rates.
FAQ
Questions about DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot
What is DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot?
It is DuckDuckGo's bot that collects site favicons to show next to search results.
Should I block DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot?
Usually not. Blocking it can leave your site without an icon in DuckDuckGo results.
How can I verify DuckDuckGo-Favicons-Bot?
No verification method is published for this bot, so a user agent match is only an indicator.
Last reviewed Oct 7, 2026