How can you limit spam on forums?

[Lorna]

I know there's been discussions about how to spot spammers, but how can you limit them from registering in the first place?

Are there any plugins available that you can install that limit the chances of spammers registering, or is it really a matter of close moderation?

I have been talking to a fellow forum owner, who is having loads of problems with people registering and posting porn - I think he has a vBulletin forum, and even though he tries to moderate it, it is a never ending stream.

Any advice appreciated.

 

[temi]

There are quite a few plugins, I used this one at webmaster serve and it significantly reduced spam registrations:
NoSpam! - an alternative to CAPTCHA images - vBulletin.org Forum

 

[Lorna]

Thanks Temi - will pass that on!

 

[Lorna]

I have recommended that he joins this forum to get extra support, as I have found it a real benefit. His forum is phBB (is that right?) not vBulletin, so thought it would be better if he got some help from you guys directly!

 

[Bagi Zoltán]

We installed some further spamwall into our board. Eg. You can't insert a link under 15 posts, and you can have signature only after your 50th post. Spammers don't like that.

 

[Lorna]

How did you do that - is it a plugin, or something you change on your forum settings?

 

[Bagi Zoltán]

For first step I disabled the signature inserting possibilities for the registered users. After that I created a new usergoup called "sig allowed" and gave them the power to have sig links. For last step I created an automatic advancement which move the registered user into the "sig allowed" group after the 50th post.
I hope you will be able to set it, but I watched Hungarian admincp during compiling this guide.

 

[melkior_inactive]

There's another handy plugin: Akismet.

Akismet is a plugin which was originally written for Wordpress Blogs and it compares comments to known spam and puts them in the moderation list if it suspects spam.
You need to register an account with Wordpress to get a working API key.

Once you have that key, you can obtain a modification of the plugin which acts as a vBulletin hack:
Vbulletin - Akismet Antispam

Once set up with the API key working it will put any suspicious posts into Threads Awaiting Moderation.

 

[mustbenuts]

stopping spam

what i did to stop spam was
installed the "no spam" hack on my vbulletin
and then set up a UK sms service (free)

then users text to get a pass code and enter that

i get NO SPAM!

i also make revenue from the texts
and i keep my .co.uk board to UK users only

i havent had one bit of spam yet!

 

[temi]

You are very lucky, I hope you stay lucky

 

[bochgoch]

...then set up a UK sms service (free)

Do you mind sharing details of the free sms service?

 

[tb987]

what i did to stop spam was
installed the "no spam" hack on my vbulletin
and then set up a UK sms service (free)

then users text to get a pass code and enter that

i get NO SPAM!

i also make revenue from the texts
and i keep my .co.uk board to UK users only

i havent had one bit of spam yet!

I like the sound of this, could you provide some more details.

Tony

 

[temi]

Tony, what is the mod called? I need to know what its called to find it at vB support forum.

Thanks

 

[buffalo]

hehehe.....

At this point, my forum is so small and so new, that I think I would be happy to have some spammers.

 

[Shadab]

Some steps which can greatly reduce Forum spam :

- Image or any other type of verification at the time of registration

- EMail link activation of accounts

- Prevent users with less than 5 posts to post a live link.

 

[symbyo sem]

There are many things to do

- Image verification and email confirmation will stop the vast majority of automated registrations and bot postings.
- Swear filters are good if the same offenders keep coming back - filter URLs, site names, etc.
- IP blocking is worth a try, but a serious spammer will get around that.
- tighten up your flood control settings to limit the number of messages a bot can post.
- if you haven't done so, be sure you have a "report" link in each message or thread so members can let mods/admins know when they spot spam
- use mass pruning/deletion for quick cleanup.
- check the IPs used to post, and document the spam to the ISP or institution if you see any kind of pattern.
- if your problem is really massive, you could even implement image verification on each new post; this will irritate the membership, though.

 

[dezinerite]

What forum software are you using? Make sure you use captcha or any other registration security tool. If you've got a vBulletin software then you might want to enable the Akismet plug in they have. It's really good and that's what I'm currently using for my forum. I've had no problems with spammers so far.

 

[Acs]

re-captcha in vB 3.7.x has worked wonders for my forums.

 

[temi]

re-captcha in vB 3.7.x has worked wonders for my forums.

Did it completely eliminate spam in your forum?