Meta-ExternalFetcher
ReviewMeta-ExternalFetcher is a search crawler from Meta used for search indexing, URL discovery, page rendering, result freshness.
User-Agent
meta-externalfetcherUser-agent strings are identity signals, not proof of identity. Confirm the source and behavior before trusting a request.
Verification and Detection
Verification method: Verify Meta-ExternalFetcher by matching `meta-externalfetcher` to Meta evidence, then checking reverse DNS, source-network ownership, signed request data, or published crawler documentation when available.
Meta-ExternalFetcher traffic is primarily detected by the `meta-externalfetcher` user-agent pattern; related patterns include `meta-externalfetcher/`; a representative HTTP user-agent is `meta-externalfetcher/1.1 (+https://developers.facebook.com/docs/sharing/webmasters/crawler)`. Compare source IPs, reverse DNS, request paths, and crawl cadence with Meta infrastructure before trusting the traffic.
Handling Guidance
Use this record as identity context. Verify the request source, behavior, and relevance to your site before allowing or restricting traffic.
Meta-ExternalFetcher is used for search indexing, URL discovery, page rendering, result freshness, and search-quality checks.
Record Details
- Aliases
- Meta Externalfetcher/
- Type
- search
- Operator
- Meta
- Family
- Meta
- Kind
- Crawler
- Purpose
- Indexing
- Identity
- Verified Bot
- Detection confidence
- High
- Spoofing risk
- Meta ExternalFetcher Has Medium Spoofing Risk Because The User Agent Can Be Copied, Even When The Bot Has Strong Source Or Documentation Support.
- Status
- Active
- Respects robots.txt
- Yes
- Last verified
- 2026 06 23
Robots.txt Snippet
User-agent: meta-externalfetcher
Disallow: /