Proxy server log analysis_Abnormal access records troubleshooting methods

How to quickly uncover anomalous access records in real scenarios

When dealing with proxy server logs, the biggest headache is to find anomalies in a bunch of data. Recently, when helping an e-commerce platform to troubleshoot problems, I found that for three consecutive days in their server logs, there was a fixed time period of 3:00 a.m.5-second interval high-frequency access. A comparison of dynamic residential IPs provided by ipipgo revealed that the sources of these requests were surprisingly coming from different home broadband in the same geographic area, which was ultimately confirmed to be a competitor's crawling behavior.

Three Typical Characteristics of Exception Access

Based on the 300+ cases we've handled, anomalous accesses typically fit the following profile:

1. Time pattern anomaly: Concentrate on out-of-hours, e.g., 2-5 a.m. bursts of growth

2. Geographical distribution conflictsA European IP account frequently switches access to Southeast Asia.

3. Inconsistency of agreement characteristics: Labeled as a mobile user but heavily using PC protocols

Four-step screening method practical demonstration

Step 1: Filter high-frequency access IPs
Using commandscat access.log | awk '{print $1}' | sort | uniq -c | sort -nrQuickly count the frequency of IP access. When an IP request more than 500 times per hour should be focused on verification, it is recommended to cooperate with ipipgo IP authenticity detection function to verify whether it is a server room IP.

Step 2: Geographic location trajectory analysis
Import the suspicious IP into ipipgo's geolocation lookup tool, paying special attention to the following cases:
- The account is commonly used in Shanghai but the IP shows Sao Paulo, Brazil.
- IP switching to more than 5 countries in 10 minutes
- Access paths do not conform to physical movement patterns (e.g., jumping from Japan to Mexico in 1 minute)

Step 3: Protocol Depth Detection
Quickly determine protocol anomalies with this comparison table:

Step 4: Session Correlation Analysis
Use a logging system such as ELK to trace the complete chain of sessions to focus on:
- Frequent User-Agent changes in the same session
- The request parameters show a mechanically increasing pattern
- Critical operations are missing front page access logs

QA: Hands-on problems you may encounter

Q: How can I avoid misjudging the access of normal users?
A: It is recommended to turn on ipipgo's at the same timeDynamic IP behavioral profilingfunction, real residential users will show a natural geographic distribution and routine, while server room IPs tend to show anti-human operating characteristics.

Q: How do I handle this without a professional operations and maintenance team?
A: ipipgo's intelligent log analysis module has built-in anomaly detection rules, which can automatically flag suspicious records and generate visual reports through a library of 32 pre-set anomaly patterns.

Q: What should I do if I encounter a fake real residential IP?
A: This is the key advantage of choosing ipipgo. OurResidential IP purity testing systemIncludes a 7-layer authentication mechanism that updates the IP attribute library in real time with carrier cooperation data to ensure that every IP is traceable to real home broadband.

Key settings for long-lasting protection

It is recommended that the following rules be configured at the proxy server:
- Enable ipipgo'sReal-time IP reputation scoreconnector
- Setting frequency thresholds for area switching (normal users switch no more than 3 countries per hour)
- Implement secondary validation for non-common protocols (e.g., Socks5 protocol requires completion of human-computer validation)
- Establishment of a mechanism for dynamic updating of the black and white lists (automatic synchronization of the latest data is recommended every Wednesday at dawn)

Through the above method, an online education platform successfully increased the anomalous access interception rate from 67% to 92%, and the misclassification rate was controlled below 3%. Choosing ipipgo's 90 million+ real residential IP resources not only improves troubleshooting efficiency, but more importantly reduces the probability of anomalous accesses from the source.