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INPUT NEEDED - Spam



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#121 Dlcruz129

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Posted 21 January 2013 - 05:18 AM

View PostRunasSudo, on 20 January 2013 - 09:44 PM, said:

How about we just add a
User-agent: *
Disallow: /
to the robots.txt and hope for the best? </joke>

View PostDlcruz129, on 20 January 2013 - 04:08 AM, said:

I think moderators should have to approve a user's first few posts.
While that would definitely work, it would probably clog up the system with new user posts. Not to mention the "I want a solution and I want it now!!!!" mentality of new user Ask a Pro posts. I've just had to register an account and jump through all those hoops, and now I have to get my post approved?!

I've seen a lot of forums do it, and it isn't really that annoying.

#122 sjkeegs

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Posted 22 January 2013 - 02:53 AM

View Postardera, on 20 January 2013 - 08:52 PM, said:

What about questions about CC at registering? I don't think that these spammers know what CC is. They could google it, but I don't think that they would find out so much...
The questions would have to be really basic. We don't want to turn away people who are coming here to learn about CC.

#123 PixelToast

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Posted 22 January 2013 - 03:37 AM

View PostRunasSudo, on 20 January 2013 - 09:44 PM, said:

How about we just add a
User-agent: *
Disallow: /
to the robots.txt and hope for the best? </joke>
oh god, that would block google :P

#124 theoriginalbit

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Posted 23 January 2013 - 12:33 PM

So updates have been rolled out that prevent a new user from posting a topic? whats the requirements for them to be able to? Coz I've already got ppl asking me why they cant start a new topic in Ask a Pro... why they are asking me, who knows.............

#125 KaoS

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Posted 23 January 2013 - 02:49 PM

View PostTheOriginalBIT, on 23 January 2013 - 12:33 PM, said:

So updates have been rolled out that prevent a new user from posting a topic? whats the requirements for them to be able to?

Dan200 appeared on IRC earlier this evening, he was notifying us that he has corrected a security flaw and has added additional security that puts new users in a group of their own, they will be unable to create a topic for a total of 3 days and if their issue is particularly urgent they can approach people on the IRC

he was also immediately waylaid by various users including myself for information :D gotta feel sorry for the guy sometimes. recognition is great but it may get a bit much from what I can see :)

Edited by KaoS, 23 January 2013 - 02:50 PM.


#126 theoriginalbit

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Posted 23 January 2013 - 02:55 PM

View PostKaoS, on 23 January 2013 - 02:49 PM, said:

View PostTheOriginalBIT, on 23 January 2013 - 12:33 PM, said:

So updates have been rolled out that prevent a new user from posting a topic? whats the requirements for them to be able to?

Dan200 appeared on IRC earlier this evening, he was notifying us that he has corrected a security flaw and has added additional security that puts new users in a group of their own, they will be unable to create a topic for a total of 3 days and if their issue is particularly urgent they can approach people on the IRC

he was also immediately waylaid by various users including myself for information :D gotta feel sorry for the guy sometimes. recognition is great but it may get a bit much from what I can see :)
ok cool thanx for the info...

#127 KaoS

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Posted 24 January 2013 - 08:19 AM

well I must say the spam seems to have vanished.... perhaps I just have great timing but it seems good so far. thanks guys

#128 NeverCast

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Posted 24 January 2013 - 09:00 AM

Now we shall see if the bots were totally autonomous or have some user managing them. If the latter, we shall see floods of spam again soon..

#129 Leo Verto

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Posted 24 January 2013 - 09:55 AM

Yup, them spamming existing threads would be really a pain.

#130 Tiin57

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Posted 25 January 2013 - 10:21 AM

View PostLeo Verto, on 24 January 2013 - 09:55 AM, said:

Yup, them spamming existing threads would be really a pain.
That seems to have stopped, and (knock on wood) the spam threat has been defeated!

#131 Cranium

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Posted 25 January 2013 - 10:23 AM

Not so much. I am still cleaning up spam every now and then. It seems that the majority of attacks were to create a new topic. Since new users can't create topics until after a few approved posts, it seems to work well. We are still working hard to prevent spam.

#132 Luanub

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Posted 25 January 2013 - 11:33 AM

I've noticed a drastic decrease in the spam. Good job guys!

#133 NeverCast

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Posted 25 January 2013 - 12:09 PM

Same here, had some nasty ones the other night. Nothing more than bringing back some dead posts really. As for new topics, that seems to have stopped.
Well done!

#134 Cranium

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Posted 25 January 2013 - 12:12 PM

Yup. I try to be on here most of the day, and do some stealth moderating, but if you see something that I might have missed, feel free to hit that report button!

#135 D3matt

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Posted 25 January 2013 - 03:21 PM

Clearly something broke again, because a 1-post user just made a spam post.

#136 Luanub

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Posted 25 January 2013 - 04:02 PM

The account is a few days old and already in the member group. Might see a few from older accounts until they all get flushed out.

#137 shiphorns

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Posted 30 January 2013 - 07:29 PM

I manage a lot of forums, and I've had the best luck keeping out spambots by baiting them with CAPTCHA but requiring real people to put something else into the field. For example, my forums display a CAPTCHA code with a text entry box next to it, but there are bold instructions to ignore the code and just type "hello" in the box instead, or the answer to a simple trivia question. The spam bots get hung up trying to parse the captcha code, and obviously it takes a real person to read the instructions that tell you to ignore the code.

#138 Tiin57

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Posted 31 January 2013 - 03:19 AM

View Postshiphorns, on 30 January 2013 - 07:29 PM, said:

I manage a lot of forums, and I've had the best luck keeping out spambots by baiting them with CAPTCHA but requiring real people to put something else into the field. For example, my forums display a CAPTCHA code with a text entry box next to it, but there are bold instructions to ignore the code and just type "hello" in the box instead, or the answer to a simple trivia question. The spam bots get hung up trying to parse the captcha code, and obviously it takes a real person to read the instructions that tell you to ignore the code.
That's an excellent idea.

#139 Dlcruz129

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Posted 31 January 2013 - 04:09 AM

View Posttiin57, on 31 January 2013 - 03:19 AM, said:

View Postshiphorns, on 30 January 2013 - 07:29 PM, said:

I manage a lot of forums, and I've had the best luck keeping out spambots by baiting them with CAPTCHA but requiring real people to put something else into the field. For example, my forums display a CAPTCHA code with a text entry box next to it, but there are bold instructions to ignore the code and just type "hello" in the box instead, or the answer to a simple trivia question. The spam bots get hung up trying to parse the captcha code, and obviously it takes a real person to read the instructions that tell you to ignore the code.
That's an excellent idea.
Indeed it is.

#140 Skullblade

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Posted 01 February 2013 - 01:48 PM

I like that idea but if this is a individual intentional attack then it will only be a little until the "attacker" realizes the new restriction and always types "hello"





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