# IP Intelligence Briefing: 202.8.40.51/32
Classification: Low Risk β Ahrefs Crawler Infrastructure
Risk Score: 25/100
## Executive Summary
IP 202.8.40.51 is associated with Ahrefs Pte Ltd (ASN 140577) and operates as part of the AHREFS-CRAWLER-A-USA network. The IP is currently classified as Low Risk with no active threat indicators, blacklist entries, or malicious campaign associations. However, geolocation validation indicates a discrepancy between claimed and actual positioning, warranting monitoring.
## Technical Profile
Ownership: Ahrefs Pte Ltd administrator
ASN: 140577
CIDR Block: 202.8.40.0/23
Geolocation: Ashburn, VA, US (39.05, -77.49)
DNS Hostname: sardine051.ahrefs.net
Service Status: Firewalled / No Services (open ports: none)
## Threat Assessment
- Abuse Confidence Score: Not applicable
- Blacklist Status: Clean (0 blacklist entries)
- Known Campaigns: None detected
- Threat Indicators: None
- Known Attacker Status: False
- Spam Source Status: False
- Tor Exit Node: False
Risk Breakdown: The IP maintains a low provider score (0) and authority score (0), with stability metrics indicating no persistent malicious activity.
## Anomalies & Validation Issues
Geolocation Discrepancy: Recent signal observation (2026-07-31) indicates an RTT violation. The IP claims to be in Ashburn, VA, but measured round-trip times suggest an actual distance of approximately 6,312 km from the claimed location. This geolocation implausibility (RTT 27ms < minimum possible 126.25ms) suggests either:
- The geolocation data is inaccurate
- The IP may be in a different physical location than registered
- Anycast or routing anomalies may be present
Operator Score: 0.3478 (Basic) β Indicates limited network infrastructure characteristics.
## Neighborhood Analysis
Subnet: 202.8.40.0/23
Abuse Density: 0
Risk Distribution: 95 low-risk, 5 medium-risk, 0 high-risk neighbors
Classification: No inherited risk from adjacent addresses
The surrounding subnet exhibits minimal abuse activity, with the vast majority of neighbors showing low-risk profiles consistent with the target IP.
## Relationship Graph
- Network: AHREFS-CRAWLER-A-USA (same network classification)
- DNS Association: sardine051.ahrefs.net
- Correlated IPs: None detected
## Historical Observation Trend
Total Observations: 14 signals recorded
Threat Persistence Days: 0
Ownership Changes: 0
Status: No persistent malicious behavior observed
Recent signal activity (2026-07-31) shows:
- RTT/geolocation validation failures
- Basic operator classification maintained
- No emergence of new threat indicators
## Recommended Actions
Current Status: No immediate blocking or mitigation required.
Monitoring Recommendations:
1. Monitor geolocation consistency over time to determine if the RTT anomaly is persistent
2. Correlate with known Ahrefs crawler behavior patterns
3. Maintain awareness of any subnet-wide risk shifts
Firewall/Network Rules: No specific blocking rules recommended at this time. The IP is classified as infrastructure with no open services or malicious indicators.
## Conclusion
IP 202.8.40.51 represents legitimate crawler infrastructure from Ahrefs with a low-risk profile. The primary concern is the geolocation validation discrepancy, which should be monitored but does not currently indicate malicious activity. No blocking or restrictive actions are warranted based on current intelligence.
---
*Report generated by IPDebrief Intelligence Platform*
This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Verify critical details independently.
π’ Ownership & Registration
| Organization | Ahrefs Pte Ltd administrator |
| ASN | AS140577 |
| Network Name | AHREFS-CRAWLER-A-USA |
| CIDR Block | 202.8.40.0/23 |
| RIR | APNIC |
| Country | US |
| Abuse Contact | Available via RDAP |
π DNS Intelligence
| PTR | sardine051.ahrefs.net |
| Forward Confirmed | Yes β FCrDNS verified |
| Forward Hostnames | sardine051.ahrefs.net |
π DNS Hygiene
| Hygiene Score | 60% (Good) |
| SPF | Not configured |
| DMARC | Not configured |
| FCrDNS | Verified |
| DNSSEC | Valid |
| CAA | Present |
βοΈ Network Classification
| Infrastructure | Unknown |
| Service Purpose | Single-Service Host |
| Network Tier | Tier 3 β Basic operator with some routing infrastructure |
π Services & Open Ports
| Port | Service | Protocol | Banner |
|---|---|---|---|
| 22 | ssh | tcp | |
| Closed Ports | 25, 80, 443, 3389, 8080, 8443 (1 open / 7 scanned) | ||
| Server | β |
| HTTP Title | β |
| SSH Version | SSH-2.0-OpenSSH_10.0p2 Debian-7+deb13u4 |
π TLS Certificate
| SANs | None |
| Valid From | β |
| Valid Until | β |
π― Confidence Breakdown
Per-dimension confidence scores based on source diversity and data freshness
| Dimension | Score | Sources | Observations |
|---|---|---|---|
| threat | 25% | 1 | 1 |
| routing | 25% | 1 | 1 |
| services | 25% | 1 | 1 |
| ownership | 25% | 1 | 2 |
| reputation | 0% | 0 | 0 |
| geolocation | 25% | 1 | 1 |
| Overall | 20% | 5 | 6 |
| Data Coherence | Mostly Consistent (80%) β 1 contradiction(s) |
| Attribution | Moderate (55%) |
| OwnershipFCrDNSGeo ConsensusGeo PlausibleIRR MatchRPKI Valid |
π Observation Timeline π Live
| First Seen | 2026-07-29 22:50:11 UTC |
| Last Seen | 2026-07-31 19:32:49 UTC |
| Profile Built | 2026-07-31 00:18:01 UTC |
| Data Freshness | Live |
| Signal Types | 19 |
| Total Observations | 19 |
Full dossier details are available via our API.