Scraping a website behind a form with a dynamic action link requires handling the following challenges:
Dynamic Form Action URL: Identify how the form action URL is generated (e.g., JavaScript, API call). Submission of Form Data: Mimic the form submission process programmatically. Dynamic Content: Handle JavaScript-rendered content using tools like Selenium or Playwright. Session Management: Maintain cookies and session headers to interact with the site properly.
Analyze the Form Use browser developer tools (F12 > Network tab). Submit the form and note: Form action URL: Is it static or dynamic? Method: POST or GET. Headers: Any required cookies, tokens, or headers. Payload: What fields (e.g., name=value) are sent.
Simulate Form Submission Use tools like requests (Python) or axios (JavaScript) for static or non-JavaScript forms.
Handle Dynamic Action URL If the action URL is generated dynamically (e.g., via JavaScript): Use browser automation tools like Selenium or Playwright to execute JavaScript.
Extract Dynamic URLs If the form action is loaded dynamically via API calls or scripts:
Analyze the Network tab for requests. Scrape or generate the action URL programmatically.
Use browser-based scraping tools like Selenium or Playwright. Use headless browsing for efficiency.
Tips Respect website terms of service and robots.txt. Introduce delays and randomization to avoid detection. Use proxies for IP rotation if necessary.