LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network with over 740 million members. As one of the most popular social media platforms, LinkedIn contains a wealth of public information that can be valuable for various purposes like sales prospecting, market research, recruiting, and more. However, scraping or bulk collecting data from LinkedIn raises important questions about ethics, privacy, and staying within LinkedIn’s terms of service.
What is web scraping?
Web scraping refers to the automated collection of data from websites. It involves using bots, scrapers or crawling software to extract large amounts of data from web pages. The scraped data may include text, images, videos, PDFs and other digital content. In the case of LinkedIn, web scrapers target member profiles to collect information like names, job titles, companies, locations, skills, educations and more. This data can then be compiled into lead lists, candidate databases and other assets.
Here are some key things to know about web scraping:
- Scraping can be done manually but typically relies on automated bots and scripts to quickly gather data from thousands or millions of pages.
- Scrapers extract data that is publicly visible on webpage HTML code. They do not “hack” into private profile settings or non-public databases.
- The scale and speed of scraping differentiates it from individual users manually looking up and copying small amounts of data.
- Scraped data is often post-processed and structured in databases to be more usable and analyzable.
- Web scraping is used for market research, lead generation, competitive analysis, recruitment, news monitoring, price comparison and other business purposes.
Is web scraping allowed on LinkedIn?
According to LinkedIn’s User Agreement, scrapers and bots are prohibited without explicit permission. The relevant section states:
You agree that you will not:
– Copy, use, disclose or distribute any information obtained from the Services, whether directly or through third parties (such as search engines), without the consent of LinkedIn;
– Disclose information that you do not have the consent to disclose (such as confidential information of others (including your employer));
– Use automated software, devices, scripts robots, other means or processes to access, “scrape,” “crawl” or “spider” the Services or any related data or information without the prior express written permission of LinkedIn. This prohibition includes but is not limited to:
– Scraping profiles and information of others through any means (including crawlers, browser plugins and add-ons, and any other technology);
– Copying profiles and information of others through any means (including crawlers, browser plugins and add-ons, and any other technology or tools);
So in short, yes scraping is prohibited by LinkedIn unless you obtain their consent first. Violating this policy could result in legal action or banning of your account.
Why does LinkedIn prohibit scraping?
There are several reasons why LinkedIn does not allow bots, scrapers and unauthorized collections of data from their platform:
- Protect member privacy – LinkedIn wants to prevent the misuse of member data and uphold expectations of privacy and control over how profiles are accessed.
- Security risks – Scrapers could expose user data or serve as vectors for cyber attacks on LinkedIn’s infrastructure.
- Competitive advantage – LinkedIn’s value comes from unique data on professionals. Scraping reduces their differentiation and competitive positioning.
- Legal obligations – LinkedIn must comply with data protection laws like the EU’s GDPR. Allowing scraping could put them at risk.
- Quality control – Scraped data often lacks context and accuracy compared to LinkedIn’s structured, verified data offerings.
- Revenue generation – LinkedIn aims to monetize data through sales and partnerships. Scraping enables accessing this asset for free.
Essentially, permitting scraping threatens LinkedIn’s business model, their member relationships, and the security, integrity and reputation of their platform.
What are the risks of scraping LinkedIn?
There are several potential risks and downsides to consider if you plan on scraping data from LinkedIn:
- Legal action – LinkedIn can sue scrapers for breach of contract and unauthorized access. They have ongoing litigation against scrapers.
- Account termination – LinkedIn will likely permanently ban any account found to be scraping.
- IP blocks – Your company or IP address range could be blocked if LinkedIn detects systematic scraping activity.
- Data quality – Scraped profiles often have incomplete, outdated or inaccurate information.
- Unethical – Many view scraping without consent as unethical, jeopardizing user trust.
- Reputational damage – Negative PR if customers or the public learn a company is scraping from LinkedIn.
If your scraping activities become public knowledge, you may lose credibility, face backlash from members and incur reputational harm. Even if legal risks are low, many view scraping professionals’ personal data without approval as questionable.
What are ethical concerns with web scraping?
While views on the ethics of web scraping vary, some common concerns include:
- Lack of user consent – Scraping harvests data posted for a specific purpose without permission.
- Privacy violations – Scraping can reveal more user info than desired or compromise anonymization.
- ToS violations – Scraping often infringes on website terms of service, rules and norms.
- Fostering deception – Scraped data enables impersonating people and other misleading tactics.
- Outdated data – Scraped data can persist online even if profiles change or people remove accounts.
- Security risks – Scraping systems can enable cyber attacks, malware and hacking.
- Unfair advantage – Scraping provides competitive intel that required significant investment to develop.
Scraping shifts control of data away from users in ways they may not expect or desire. Even when focusing only on public pages, systematically extracting user data without permission raises ethics flags for many advocates and experts.
Is it ever acceptable to scrape LinkedIn data?
In limited cases, there may be arguments that scraping LinkedIn data is justifiable or at least legally permissible:
- Using only a small amount of data for internal research or analysis purposes
- Anonymous aggregation for statistical insights without retaining profile data
- Scraping your own user data using tools like LinkedIn’s Download Your Data feature
- With express permission from LinkedIn via partnership and formal data licensing
- As part of academic research with appropriate protections and limitations in place
- If required by legal process such as a subpoena or regulatory investigation
However, most business applications of scraping like lead generation, recruitment, prospecting and competitive intelligence fall outside these narrow exceptions. As a guideline, if your scraping provides systematic, unfair commercial advantages or infringes on LinkedIn’s rights and reasonable expectations, it is likely unwise and problematic.
What are the alternatives to scraping LinkedIn?
Instead of scraping without permission, here are some better options to get LinkedIn data for business uses:
- LinkedIn sales navigator – Pay for a subscription get access to search filters and prospect data.
- LinkedIn recruiter – Recruiter accounts enable finding and managing candidates.
- Official data licensing – Formal partnerships with LinkedIn to get vetted, structured data.
- Ad targeting – Use LinkedIn ads to get visibility with your target demographics.
- Public tools – Tap into limited public search and Sponsored Content to connect.
- Individual outreach – Manually connect with your ideal prospects and build relationships.
The best approach depends on your goals and budget. But in general, leveraging legitimate channels and LinkedIn’s business offerings is wiser than unapproved scraping attempts.
What are LinkedIn’s perspectives on scrapers?
LinkedIn executives and representatives have made the company’s disapproval of scraping clear:
- “Scraping member data violates our terms of service.” – LinkedIn spokesperson
- “We work hard to keep information on LinkedIn accurate and trustworthy…Scraping violates our terms of service.” – LinkedIn’s former legal chief Blake Lawit.
- “Scraping tools that build databases of information violate our terms of service and should be avoided.” – LinkedIn marketing VP Rich Reid.
- “Scraping tools out there are just not a legal way to conduct business…We don’t support using those tools.” – LinkedIn’s former head of litigation Juan Corvalan.
LinkedIn also employs technical defenses and lawsuits to protect their platform and members from unauthorized scraping bots and scrapers.
What does the law say about web scraping?
The legality of web scraping depends on jurisdiction, context and intended use. Here are some key legal considerations:
- Scraping public data likely does not violate privacy or hacking laws like the CFAA
- However, it may breach website terms, contracts and exceed authorized access
- Scraping could violate copyrights, database rights and other IP protections
- Antitrust arguments contest whether websites can block competitors from scraping
- Scraping for internal use raises fewer concerns versus reselling data
- GDPR and CCPA require disclosing if scraped data feeds into user profiles
- Scraping certain government sites may be explicitly prohibited
Ultimately, the law remains unsettled and complex when it comes to web scraping. While not unambiguously illegal, scraping often occupies an ethical and legal gray zone that is best avoided if possible.
Recent examples of LinkedIn scraping penalties
Here are some recent cases of scrapers and bots getting in trouble for improperly using data from LinkedIn:
- LinkedIn sued data analytics company Scraping Hub in 2019 for scraping 100 million member profiles.
- In 2017, LinkedIn won a $20 million lawsuit against data miner hiQ Labs for scraping public data.
- The company Octopus was caught scraping LinkedIn data resulting in terminated accounts.
- Browser extension connector LeadIQ had accounts banned for automated scraping activity.
- The UK’s data watchdog fined a firm ??40,000 in 2021 for using scraped LinkedIn info.
- Researchers at Montreal’s Polytechnique school had computers blocked by LinkedIn for suspicious scraping activity.
These examples demonstrate LinkedIn’s efforts to detect and punish unauthorized scraping through lawsuits, blocks and bans. Those considering scraping should assume a high probability of repercussions.
Key takeaways on scraping LinkedIn data
In summary, key points to keep in mind on the controversial practice of scraping LinkedIn profiles and information:
- Scraping violates LinkedIn’s User Agreement and Terms of Service.
- LinkedIn explicitly prohibits bots and scrapers without permission.
- Scraping risks litigation, bans and other enforcement from LinkedIn.
- Scraping raises concerns around ethics, privacy and security.
- Scraped data is often unreliable, outdated and lacks context.
- It is wise to use official APIs or data products instead of unapproved scraping.
- If scraping, use minimal data, anonymize information and evaluate your motivations.
With LinkedIn’s clear policies prohibiting scraping, pursuing this route involves substantial legal and ethical hazards. Proceed with caution and carefully assess if benefits outweigh the potential damages.
Conclusion
Scraping LinkedIn data without permission is risky, legally questionable, and explicitly banned by LinkedIn’s policies. While the public visibility of profiles makes scraping possible, doing so at scale violates LinkedIn’s TOS, member expectations, and reasonable data usage norms. If discovered, scrapers face severe repercussions including lawsuits, bans, and reputation damage. For most business goals, utilizing legitimate approaches like ads, recruiter tools, or individual outreach is a wiser choice than unapproved scraping attempts.