Spam Posts

Post by **The Robman** » Sat Nov 25, 2006 4:04 pm

This message is for the moderators.

I have just created a new forum called Deleted Posts. In future when you spot a spam post please move the post into this forum instead of deleting it. I'm doing this as I'd like to try and check the IP addresses that the spambots are using and possibly block them.

If the post has been added to an existing thread, rather than in a new thread, please split the post into a new thread and then move the new thread here instead.

Thanks,
Rob

Mark Pierson · Post by **Mark Pierson** » Sun Nov 26, 2006 9:47 am

Rob,

You may want to go to the phpBB site and look at some of the several options for preventing spam. There's a ton of MODS available but since I don't know anything about what goes on "under the hood" I can't recommend any particular one. The general concensus seems to be that the "visual verification" built into phpBB doesn't work or is easily bypassed.

Post by **The Robman** » Sun Nov 26, 2006 10:53 am

The visual confirmation is easily fooled. I've just installed a mod that changes one of the variables used during registration which should (hopefully) make it harder for the spambots to sign up.

We'll see.

Post by **The Robman** » Tue Nov 28, 2006 9:07 pm

The first anti-spambot mod that I tried had no effect, so I've added another. Fingers crossed!

Post by **The Robman** » Wed Nov 29, 2006 9:14 am

I don't want to declare the new mod a success too early, but there haven't been any new spambot signups since I added it, and normally I would have expected at least 6 or more spam accounts to have been registered by now.

So fingers crossed, this could mean that we've seen the last of the automated spam. Of course, nothing will stop a live human from posting spam, so we'll still need to blast that stuff manually.

Just in case you're interested, the mod that I installed that finally put an end to all the spambot user accounts was this one...

http://www.phpbb.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=435702

Post by **ElizabethD** » Wed Oct 10, 2007 9:19 pm

Rob, please explain delete vs move in this context.
Can you recover delete from your db if needed?
Where is MOVE?

Post by **The Robman** » Wed Oct 10, 2007 9:29 pm

You move threads using the MOVE button

. When you delete a thread or post, it's completely gone, there's no way to get it back.

Post by **ElizabethD** » Thu Oct 11, 2007 8:16 am

I see quote, edit, x(delete), IP.
Do I need better glasses?

Post by **The Robman** » Thu Oct 11, 2007 1:35 pm

You don't need better glasses, you just need to know where to point them!

You're looking at the post itself, whereas you should be looking at the bottom of the thread, just below where it says "Watch this topic for replies".

Post by **ElizabethD** » Thu Oct 11, 2007 8:53 pm

That's far out, or far down to be exact