{"id":154,"date":"2021-04-18T12:01:36","date_gmt":"2021-04-18T12:01:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/?p=154"},"modified":"2021-04-18T12:01:38","modified_gmt":"2021-04-18T12:01:38","slug":"uptime-robot-false-positives-whitelist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/uptime-robot-false-positives-whitelist\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Solve Uptime Robot False Positives (Whitelist For Beginners)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Is your website up and running but your new Uptime Robot monitor is sending alerts that it\u2019s down? These alerts are known as false positives. Uptime Robot has detected a problem that does not exist. Something isn\u2019t working, and it\u2019s not your website!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There is usually a very simple fix. The Uptime Robot IP addresses are being blocked, and you need an Uptime Robot whitelist. This article explains what\u2019s going on and how to implement a solution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_65 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-66285ca81f03d\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-66285ca81f03d\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/uptime-robot-false-positives-whitelist\/#What_Are_Uptime_Robot_False_Positives\" title=\"What Are Uptime Robot False Positives?\">What Are Uptime Robot False Positives?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/uptime-robot-false-positives-whitelist\/#How_To_Identify_A_False_Positive\" title=\"How To Identify A False Positive\">How To Identify A False Positive<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/uptime-robot-false-positives-whitelist\/#Most_Common_Problem_Uptime_Robot_Is_Blocked\" title=\"Most Common Problem: Uptime Robot Is Blocked\">Most Common Problem: Uptime Robot Is Blocked<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/uptime-robot-false-positives-whitelist\/#Uptime_Robot_Locations\" title=\"Uptime Robot Locations\">Uptime Robot Locations<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/uptime-robot-false-positives-whitelist\/#Solution_1_Ask_Your_Hosting_Provider_To_Whitelist_Uptime_Robot_IP_Addresses\" title=\"Solution 1: Ask Your Hosting Provider To Whitelist Uptime Robot IP Addresses\">Solution 1: Ask Your Hosting Provider To Whitelist Uptime Robot IP Addresses<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/uptime-robot-false-positives-whitelist\/#Solution_2_Add_The_Uptime_Robot_IP_Addresses_To_Your_Firewall_Whitelist\" title=\"Solution 2: Add The Uptime Robot IP Addresses To Your Firewall Whitelist\">Solution 2: Add The Uptime Robot IP Addresses To Your Firewall Whitelist<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/uptime-robot-false-positives-whitelist\/#Solution_3_Whitelist_Uptime_Robot_In_Your_Security_Software\" title=\"Solution 3: Whitelist Uptime Robot In Your Security Software\">Solution 3: Whitelist Uptime Robot In Your Security Software<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/uptime-robot-false-positives-whitelist\/#Pause_Your_Monitor_While_Waiting_For_A_Solution\" title=\"Pause Your Monitor While Waiting For A Solution\">Pause Your Monitor While Waiting For A Solution<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_Are_Uptime_Robot_False_Positives\"><\/span>What Are Uptime Robot False Positives?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>This situation can be worrying and confusing when it happens. And it\u2019s usually going to be when you create your first monitor <strong>or<\/strong> if you\u2019ve switched hosting providers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>First of all, let\u2019s identify that a false positive is happening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Uptime robot false positive scenario<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>You receive an alert and you see a red status in your dashboard. But when you browse to the \u201cproblem\u201d web page, it loads as usual for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"585\" height=\"307\" src=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/monitor_down_status.png\" alt=\"uptime robot dashboard shows a web page is down\" class=\"wp-image-150\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/monitor_down_status.png 585w, https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/monitor_down_status-300x157.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 585px) 100vw, 585px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>So, it seems that Uptime Robot is providing a <strong>positive<\/strong> assessment that your web page is down. If that isn\u2019t the case, then the assessment is false: hence a false positive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Isn\u2019t \u201cfalse positive\u201d kind of backward?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The terminology is a little odd because there\u2019s nothing vaguely \u201cpositive\u201d about problems with your website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But we\u2019re just describing the monitoring report: it is asserting that the page is in a failed state \u2013 this is a positive assertion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Don\u2019t overthink it, you\u2019ll get used to the phrase for this event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_To_Identify_A_False_Positive\"><\/span>How To Identify A False Positive<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Take these steps to identify that the target web page is not unavailable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Check the exact monitored URL<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Remember, your HTTP(s) monitor is on a specific page. You\u2019ve probably set it up on your home page, but sometimes it\u2019s worth adding a monitor on other pages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Perhaps you set up a monitor on a special offer that has since lapsed. And one of your admins has deleted the page from WordPress. So, this is not a false positive \u2013 it is a true positive. But you can breathe a sigh of relief that the rest of your website is up and running!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The URL of the target web page is embedded in the alert message.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you\u2019re looking at the dashboard details, then the URL is not immediately visible. This is why it\u2019s good to give very descriptive friendly names to your monitors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>To see the URL in the Dashboard, expand the settings and open the \u201cEdit\u201d page.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"455\" height=\"177\" src=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/settings_edit.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-155\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/settings_edit.png 455w, https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/settings_edit-300x117.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 455px) 100vw, 455px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Use A different browser and\/or clear its cache<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>At this point, we\u2019re assuming that you have pulled up the target URL in your favorite browser and there seems to be no problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You may be seeing cached results. Either empty the browser cache or switch to a browser you infrequently use. If you regularly switch browsers, you\u2019d better clear the cache of one of them to do this check.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Most_Common_Problem_Uptime_Robot_Is_Blocked\"><\/span>Most Common Problem: Uptime Robot Is Blocked<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>When you set up an HTTP(s) monitor, it sends the same request to your web page as your browser sends. Every request comes from a specific location on the internet. This location is known as the IP address.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The most common reason for false positives is that one or more IP Addresses used by Uptime Robot are being blocked by your hosting provider, or a firewall you have configured on your server, or a security plugin you installed on your website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The general solution is to ensure that the Uptime Robot IP addresses are whitelisted i.e. are allowed through these legitimate defenses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So, let\u2019s take a look at where the Uptime Robot requests are coming from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Uptime_Robot_Locations\"><\/span>Uptime Robot Locations<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Uptime Robot uses a fixed set of IP addresses across various locations throughout the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The main set of IPs are located in Dallas, Texas. There are more in locations like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>New York, USA<\/li><li>Ohio, USA<\/li><li>Virginia, USA<\/li><li>Toronto, Canada<\/li><li>Singapore<\/li><li>London, United Kingdom<\/li><li>Amsterdam, Holland<\/li><li>Frankfurt, Germany<\/li><li>Dublin, Ireland<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>There are over 130 separate IP addresses that may be used. Fortunately, the Uptime Robot website provides a simple text list on its support page. Scroll down to the end of the page and you\u2019ll see <a href=\"https:\/\/uptimerobot.com\/help\/locations\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">a link to the combined list<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So, now you know what IP addresses may be being blocked, what can you do with that? That depends on how the IPs are being blocked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Solution_1_Ask_Your_Hosting_Provider_To_Whitelist_Uptime_Robot_IP_Addresses\"><\/span>Solution 1: Ask Your Hosting Provider To Whitelist Uptime Robot IP Addresses<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>If you haven\u2019t installed security software (e.g. Wordfence) or set up a firewall on your server, then the blacklisting is likely being applied by your hosting provider.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Occasionally, hosting providers see regular requests from website monitoring services (this doesn\u2019t just affect Uptime Robot), and incorrectly classifies this traffic as spam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s also worth pointing out that Uptime Robot occasionally adds new locations to its official list. Your hosting provider may be using an out-of-date list and your new monitor is coming from a location that hasn\u2019t been included.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You can\u2019t fix this problem yourself, so the solution is to contact your hosting provider\u2019s customer support. They should be familiar with external monitoring in general. Uptime Robot has been around for years and is very popular, so I expect the technical support personnel to recognize their name.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Send them <a href=\"https:\/\/uptimerobot.com\/inc\/files\/ips\/IPv4andIPv6.txt\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">the link<\/a> to the Uptime Robot IP list, and ask them to ensure that the addresses are whitelisted.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So, now you know what IP addresses may be being blocked, what can you do with that? That depends on how the IPs are being blocked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Solution_2_Add_The_Uptime_Robot_IP_Addresses_To_Your_Firewall_Whitelist\"><\/span>Solution 2: Add The Uptime Robot IP Addresses To Your Firewall Whitelist<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>If you have configured a server firewall, then I\u2019ll assume you have the technical know-how to add to a whitelist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>All you need to know is how to get the list of IP addresses. Use the link!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Solution_3_Whitelist_Uptime_Robot_In_Your_Security_Software\"><\/span>Solution 3: Whitelist Uptime Robot In Your Security Software<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>If you have installed and configured security software on your website, then you may have inadvertently blocked Uptime Robot. This is particularly likely if you were dealing with a spike in bot traffic, and started blocking IP addresses that \u201clooked\u201d malicious.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We have tutorials on blocking and whitelisting on Wordfence<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/how-to-block-an-ip-address-in-wordfence\/\">How to block IP addresses on Wordfence<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/how-to-whitelist-an-ip-address-in-wordfence\/\">How to whitelist IP addresses on Wordfence<\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Pause_Your_Monitor_While_Waiting_For_A_Solution\"><\/span>Pause Your Monitor While Waiting For A Solution<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Are you being inundated by alerts while waiting for your hosting provider to take action? Or maybe you&#8217;re figuring out how to add the Uptime Robot IP addresses to the firewall or security software you configured.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You can use the Uptime Robot dashboard to pause the monitor. This will stop further alerts until you reactivate it. Expand the settings and hit the &#8220;pause&#8221; link.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"439\" height=\"180\" src=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/settings_pause.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-156\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/settings_pause.png 439w, https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/settings_pause-300x123.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 439px) 100vw, 439px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Is your website up and running but your new Uptime Robot monitor is sending alerts that it\u2019s down? These alerts are known as false positives. Uptime Robot has detected a problem that does not exist. Something isn\u2019t working, and it\u2019s not your website! There is usually a very simple fix. The Uptime Robot IP addresses &#8230; <a title=\"How To Solve Uptime Robot False Positives (Whitelist For Beginners)\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/uptime-robot-false-positives-whitelist\/\" aria-label=\"More on How To Solve Uptime Robot False Positives (Whitelist For Beginners)\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/154"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=154"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/154\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":157,"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/154\/revisions\/157"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=154"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=154"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bandittracker.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=154"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}