The question is asked out of suspicion rather than curiosity: something in the exchange felt unnatural. The answer matters, the cause matters more.
Why people ask
Too fast a reply, too even a phrasing, an answer to something other than what was asked. «Are you a bot?» is a signal that the previous message failed.
Why both obvious answers are wrong
«No, I am a real person» is a plain lie if it is not true. It destroys everything that follows: someone who suspected and got a denial will test again and catch you.
«Yes, I am a bot» ends the conversation in most cases, because the reader sees no further point.
What works
Moving to substance: answer the original question more specifically than before and offer to continue on the matter itself. People are not checking papers, they are checking usefulness — a substantive answer removes the interest in the question.
If the conversation has become serious, bringing in a person is the honest move — and saying so plainly, «let me answer that properly», followed by a human reply, closes the issue entirely.
Preventing it
- A delay before replying — instant reactions are suspicious.
- Uneven message lengths.
- An answer to the question asked, with nothing extra.
- No stock phrases.
Setting up handover is on the automation page.