You saw AS24940 attached to an IP address and want to know whose network it is. AS24940 is operated by Hetzner, a large German hosting company. This page explains what the ASN is, what runs on it, and how to treat its traffic.
What is AS24940?
AS24940 is the Autonomous System Number operated by Hetzner Online, a German cloud and dedicated-server provider. The ASN identifies Hetzner's network on the internet, so any route originating from AS24940 belongs to Hetzner's address space. For the underlying concept, see what an ASN is.
- ASN: AS24940
- Operator: Hetzner Online GmbH
- Type: Hosting / data center
- Registry: RIPE NCC (Europe)
Who is Hetzner?
Hetzner is a popular, low-cost hosting provider known for cheap dedicated servers and cloud instances, with data centers in Germany and Finland. Its pricing makes it a favorite for developers and startups, and, for the same reason, for operators of scrapers, bots, and VPN endpoints. All of that traffic originates from AS24940.
Why you see AS24940 in your logs
AS24940 appears in logs because it is a hosting network. Requests from it come from servers, so the mix skews toward automation: crawlers, monitoring tools, API clients, and abuse. A signup or checkout from Hetzner space is worth more scrutiny than one from a residential ISP.
Should you block AS24940?
Generally not as a blanket rule. Plenty of legitimate services run on Hetzner, so blocking the whole ASN can cut off real traffic. Instead, treat AS24940 as a hosting ASN and weight it as higher risk: step up verification, tighten rate limits, and combine it with other signals. A full block is only appropriate on surfaces where server traffic is never expected.
How to check an IP against AS24940
To confirm an IP belongs to Hetzner, look up its ASN. Abstract's free ASN Lookup tool returns the ASN, operator, and type for any address. In production, the IP Intelligence API returns the ASN plus is_hosting, is_vpn, and is_proxy flags in a single request, so Hetzner traffic can be scored in real time. It is the same data behind bot detection and free trial abuse defenses.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is AS24940?
AS24940 is the Autonomous System Number operated by Hetzner Online, a German hosting and cloud provider. It identifies Hetzner's network and IP ranges.
Why is AS24940 in my logs?
Hetzner is a hosting provider, so AS24940 traffic comes from servers. That includes legitimate applications along with scrapers, bots, and VPNs running on cheap Hetzner instances.
Should I block AS24940?
Not usually as a whole. Legitimate services use Hetzner, so treat the ASN as higher risk and score it with other signals rather than blanket-blocking.
Is Hetzner traffic safe?
It is mixed. Most is benign, but because Hetzner is cheap and easy to rent, it carries more automated abuse than a residential network, so it warrants extra scrutiny on sensitive actions.
How do I check if an IP is Hetzner?
Look the IP up in Abstract's ASN Lookup tool or via the IP Intelligence API to see whether its ASN is AS24940.
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