SPAM

they tell me that spam is part and parcel of having a website.

They are correct.

Does anyone know if this spam increase is likely to be linked to the hack attack or not ?

It’s got nothing to do with. The spammers have found your site. That’s all there is to it.

Do others just put up with all this spam ?

Most people using a combination of anti-spam plugins – such as Akismet.

Would using the ip blacklist help my problem at all? I don’t pay that much attention to my ip addresses, but even the same author uses different ip addresss. I’m using Akismet as my spam filter if this makes any difference. I also have another thread open on this topic.

Would using the ip blacklist help my problem at all?

I don’t think so. Blacklists are really crude and tend to impact on genuine visitors.

So, now the spammers are attacking my contact form – I use the most popular wordpress 7 contact form.

What can be done ?

I absolutely don’t accept that this vile spam is something I have to put up with. Some of it is rude and unpleasant and should be unacceptable.

Now that the spammers have also targetted my contact for (and I don’t have the re-capatcha letters there – can they be added ?) what else can be done please ? thanks

ps I’m happy with the \Defensio plugin which traps 98% os the spam. Not many do better than that. Everyone has their favourite. They all do the same job.

So the plugin is doing it’s job; I want the spam to be stopped from hitting my server (and I pay for a dedicated one) so why can’t that be done ? I’m amazed at the acceptance of this rubbish on the internet. Appreciate it’s not easy to solve but who are the experts ? What is being done to tackle it ?

You will never be able to totally eliminate spam. As esmi already stated, you can mitigate more than 98% by using additional plugins. Try using Akismet with Defensio and see what happens.

I want the spam to be stopped from hitting my server

There’s no such thing as a ‘do not call’ list for spammers. And even if there was, they’re breaking the law anyway, so they’d just ignore it. You can have a ‘no solicitation’ sign, but some moron’s gonna ring your bell anyway.

Akismet, Bad Behavior, and Cookies for Comments, are my trifecta.

I get the same thing on my site

its no big deal for me- just dont approve those spammy comments

thanks guys appreciate your help.

You can’t use other plugins with Defensio, and as I said I’m happy with it’s performance – I never found any of the others to be any better.

WordPress provides a facility to add IP addresses in settings>discussion>comment blacklist. So are you all saying that it’s pointless adding the IP addresses, because I’ve added hundreds. SOmetimes it seems to help and sometimes they seem to be ignored and still arrive. But what’s the point of it being there if it’s no use ?

Some of these spam comments are pretty rude and if they are breaking the law then what is being done about it ? Does anyone have any information on who the leading researchers are ?

I’m now getting spam on my contact 7 form. Anyone know how to add re-capatcha to the form please ? I’ve seen it on some sites but the settings page gives me no clues and the plugin author hasn’t responded to my question. I pre-moderate all comments so getting spam into my email is proving a proper nightmare.

Thank you all for your help so far.

It’s not pointless it’s just … well.

Okay, here’s the deal. If I, a spammer, find out you’re blocking IP x.x.x.x, I’ll just move to another one. Eventually that old IP may get picked up by a real person, who now can’t access your site. Basically there’s not enough value in blocking IPs, and too much potential to harm your bottom line.

What’s being done? Nothing. Because no one who’s made this illegal is enforcing it (California, I’m looking at you). It’s like junk physical mail or unsolicited phone calls. People get a hold of a site, which is much easier than a phone number, and they call. And call. And call. The phone companies stepped up because they get enough chaff about it, and now in the US we have a ‘do not call list.’ And yet I still get 4-10 calls a week and tell these people “Hi, this is my cell phone AND I’m on Do-Not-Call. Take me off your list.” And then I have to complain to the right people and tell them ‘so and so is ignoring this.’ Most of the time I just hang up.

If you’re getting spam on Contact 7, try Bad Behavior. Captcha’s aren’t effective long-term.

Apparently my site is still being subject to hack attacks and I’ve been told to check that my theme, Fresh News, contains an updated version of tim thumb, if applicable. Does it ?

Ipetenu you can’t use any other spam plugin with Defensio, and I’m happy with it’s performance – none of the others have worked any better for me.

I would like to find something to add the words/letters to my contact form 7 like re-capatcha does. Is there anything that works that anyone knows of, and that is compatible with what I am already running ?

Try contacting the theme’s developers: https://www.woothemes.com/support/

I’m annoyed at Defensio, not any posters here. So my snarky criticality is aimed at a product that makes it harder for me to make my site workable.

you can’t use any other spam plugin with Defensio

If a plugin makes it so I cannot use any other spam plugin, then it’s a poorly written product. What else might it conflict with, then? They’re basically saying that instead of fixing their app, that you shuold just trust ’em and no one else. That’s a bad idea, because spammers come after you in many different ways, and there can never be an ‘all in one’ solution. Not every type of spammer hits every site the same way.

I would like to find something to add the words/letters to my contact form 7 like re-capatcha does.

Guess what? You can’t! Defensio won’t let you add in any other spam fighting plugins and a CAPTCHA? Is a spam fighting plugin. And there in is most of my rational for thinking it’s a stupid product. It just locked you in and that’s bad form.

Apparently my site is still being subject to hack attacks and I’ve been told to check that my theme, Fresh News, contains an updated version of tim thumb, if applicable. Does it ?

That’s a different subject all together. You’d have to ask Woo, it’s their theme and it’s behind a paywall: https://www.woothemes.com/2011/01/fresh-news/

okay well thanks. Doesn’t really help me ! Defensio does the job for me, as well as any other plugin has. The plugin itself is not the issue – it’s the spam.

No-one here seems to know how to add a recapatcha to contact form 7, which would also help.

It doesn’t appear clear at all whether spam is illeagal or not; either way for me it’s a completel nuisance and I want to do more to stop it – but I do need someone to explain how to add a recapatcha to contact form 7. The plugin owner hasn’t responded.

Maybe someone here can help ?