Major spam

[Prue B]

All I can say is good luck. I have modded on a few Harry Potter websites and we have to be really careful because a lot of kids visit, and the websites were a real hassle for us. We even had an issue with members who did not have links in their profiles having porn links appear all of a sudden. So we basically had to have a link of some sort to be sure we did not get a spam one.

[James Colclough]

I use spamarrest.com

[John Smith]

Not a bad idea James, thanks for the tip. Unfortunately, I was talking about Spam registrations to the forum rather than Spam mail.

[GarethB]

John,

Going back to the funny shaped letters, I registerd on a motoring web site recently and the letters are in red with blue squigles behind!

There is also an option if you find reading them difficult to click on a link that then reads the letters to you.

As I did not have my lenses in I found this really useful and registerd no problem. Think it was designed for illiterate motorists rather than blind ones

[Alison Fisher]

I help run a forum that uses phpbb software and spammers are a big pain in the behind there as well.

They don't activate their accounts but they still appear on the member list and fill their profiles with links to places I really don't want to visit thank you very much.

We just keep deleting them but what a pain!

I occasionally look at a phpbb users forum and even though everyone seems to have the same problems no one has come up with a spammer proof way of stopping them. If I hear of a way I'll let you know John.

[John Smith]

Thanks Alison,

I know that the "type the visual code" is a good way to stop the spammers, but I'm so reluctant to use it!

One way (if you're in to modding) is to rename all the registration buttons. That way the spammers don't know what to "click" on!

[Alison Fisher]

One way (if you're in to modding) is to rename all the registration buttons. That way the spammers don't know what to "click" on!

But if you do that then won't 'real people' not know what to click on either and so also not be able to join? Or am I having an 'Ali moment' and missing something obvious?

Given the number of spammers we get every day on the site I help on I think it might well be worth trying the squiggly letter route, even if it only slows them down a little bit.

I know exactly what you mean about members adding something to their profiles Prue. Running a forum can be very satisfying but you never truly get to relax and enjoy the place as you're always having to be vigilant. Hats off to John for his work to make sure this forum runs so smoothly.

[John Smith]

Don't worry Alison, the technique (which I've not yet tried) is to rename the HTML form elements in both the form HTML code and the PHP that reads it. So it would work fine for humans, but the robots would have a bit of trouble.

Sounds worthwhile, but cause headaches when it comes to upgrading the software, as you'd have to put the old version back, run the upgrade and then rename it all again

[Alison Fisher]

Ah, right, with you now. Sounds a bit beyond mine and my friends' capabilities though so that's one idea we won't be trying.

[Andrew MacLean]

I have difficulty with anything more complicated than an old steam typoeriter. I only manage my comptuer because I can pretend to myself it is just a tupewriter that somebody had meddled with.

I can see the problem of spam regustrations, and can see the need for protocols that ensure that only real people become registered as users. I also know that John will do nothing that includes Robots but excludes Moroms (like me!)

Oh by the way, do you remember the little vignette of WH Auden

See the happy moron
Doesn't give a damn
Wish I was a moron
Oh dear, perhaps I am