Cloudflare introduced a Monitor setting for Precursor, allowing detections to be logged without affecting bot scoring or challenge outcomes. Engineers responsible for AI‑driven traffic analysis, platform reliability, or security posture can now test the service in production without unintended side effects.
New Precursor Status Options
In the Security > Settings panel the Precursor Status selector now includes three choices: Off, Monitor, and Arm. Selecting Arm retains the original behavior where a detection can lower a request's bot score and trigger a challenge. Choosing Monitor records detections but leaves the score and challenge flow untouched. Off disables Precursor entirely.
Separate Interstitial Configuration
The interstitial display is no longer tied to the mode selection. A site‑wide default is set with Show Interstitial, and granular Interstitial Rules can target specific URLs. For example, you might keep the interstitial off for most pages but enforce a challenge on /checkout to verify session integrity before a purchase.
Operational Considerations
- Enable Monitor to collect detection data while preserving existing traffic patterns; useful for baseline measurement.
- When ready to enforce, switch to Arm and observe the impact on bot scores and challenge clearance rates.
- Use Interstitial Rules to limit challenge exposure to high‑risk endpoints, reducing user friction.
- Monitor logs for false positives during the Monitor phase; these will not affect end‑users but can inform rule tuning.
- Document the status transition process to ensure coordinated roll‑out across CI/CD pipelines.
Related CloudNinjas coverage: security.
What This Means For Practitioners
Adopt the Monitor mode as a staging step before full enforcement, allowing you to validate detection accuracy without impacting live traffic. Pair the mode with targeted interstitial rules to protect critical paths while keeping the broader site experience unchanged. After a sufficient observation period, evaluate detection rates and adjust the status to Arm where confidence is high, and refine interstitial rules as needed.