: Is limiting the page views from users but allowing Googlebot unlimited access considered cloaking? Domaintools when accessing Whois info like this: http://whois.domaintools.com/google.com gives error

@Jessie594

Are you finding the 20 lookup limit with 20 seperate Google searches ?

Because if you are not and you find the site once and try to search 20 times from that page you found, then it is fine for Domaintools to put a limit on. If not, then maybe Domaintools is using something like First Click Free.

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@Jamie184

This is not technically cloaking. It is not uncommon to allow search engines access to areas of a site that requires a login. Though generally this is discouraged, it is not against the rules. Otherwise, how would these pages get indexed in the first place? How would someone find the sites content even if it requires an account? This is normal business.

There is First Click Free which is Google's compromise to the issue. However, there are very many sites that archive articles, research papers, patents, and so forth that do not engage in First Click Free and yet have all of their pages indexed that either exist behind a login or paywall without penalty. This has been a standard practice since the beginning and is technically not against the rules since the content is exactly the same no matter how it is served- it just requires an account.

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