Amazon Blocks Meta's Muse AI Shopping Assistant

Websites are increasingly blocking AI agents from accessing and using their services online, with some deliberately restricting access while others use security systems to prevent unwanted automated traffic.

Amazon has taken a more direct approach, with reports suggesting that it is blocking Meta's Muse, an AI shopping assistant, from accessing its website. This move is not surprising given the growing competition in the personal AI space.

Personal AI agents like Meta's Muse are designed to navigate websites and perform tasks on behalf of their users, such as grocery shopping or booking travel. However, this convenience comes with a catch: websites can still choose to block these agents even if they allow human users access.

The security concerns surrounding AI agents are also becoming more pressing, particularly when financial transactions are involved. JPMorgan Chase has expressed its own concerns about the use of shared login credentials and screen scraping by some agents to transfer funds.

JPMorgan Chase's CFO Jeremy Barnum recently highlighted these risks during the bank's October earnings call, warning that customers who share their login credentials with AI agents could be held responsible if an unauthorized transaction occurs.

The issue highlights the tension between the convenience offered by personal AI agents and the need for websites to maintain security and control over their services.

Amazon is currently engaged in a dispute with Perplexity over its Comet AI browser, which the retailer claims violates its access rules and puts customer data at risk.

The issue has been ongoing since 2026, when a federal appeals court vacated a preliminary injunction against Perplexity, but the underlying dispute remains unresolved. This case highlights the complexities of regulating automated access to websites.

In a related matter, Amazon itself offers a "Buy for Me" feature that allows customers to purchase products from other brands' websites, raising questions about why it would block third-party agents like Comet AI browser. The issue is not unique to Amazon, as businesses have commercial reasons to control automated access.

eBay's user agreement prohibits unauthorized buy-for-me agents unless the company grants permission, and Delta has confirmed that it does not integrate with third-party agents on its website. However, it remains unclear whether Delta deliberately blocks specific agents or simply restricts all automated access.

As websites struggle to balance convenience and security, human-verification prompts can interrupt automated shopping sessions, causing frustration for users who are trying to complete a task. This can happen even when the agent is following instructions from its user, leading to confusion about why an assistant cannot finish the job.

Cloudflare has introduced new controls that allow website owners to distinguish between different types of AI agents accessing their sites. This includes search crawlers, AI training bots and agents acting on behalf of users, which can now be blocked or allowed separately.

Website owners using Cloudflare's services have had these new settings in place since September 15. As a result, domains hosted by the company default to allowing search crawlers while blocking AI training bots and agents on pages displaying ads. This means that website owners can adjust their settings to suit their needs, such as allowing assistants to access certain areas of their site while blocking others.