Detrimental Effects of Spam Could be Minimized...

[ic-racer]

...if threads started by spammers were ignored when the spammer is placed on one's ignore list. This would allow users to 'self moderate' before the moderators can get around to finding and deleting all the threads. For example in today's spam attack, ignoring the unwanted user still allows all the posted garbage thread titles on my computer.

[IanG]

they are best reported immediately. Some don't realise the small black triange on the left on the blue band below the thread is the Report button.

Ian

[Vaughn]

Exactly -- I do not respond, but hit the black triangle and report it as spam (singing "Spamalot" in my head while I type -- or sometimes the Viking version).

[Willie]

If any of you find a way to track the poster to a physical address I bet there is someone in the area who can let them know just how much they are 'appreciated'.

[Oren Grad]

they are best reported immediately. Some don't realise the small black triange on the left on the blue band below the thread is the Report button.


Exactly -- I do not respond, but hit the black triangle and report it as spam (singing "Spamalot" in my head while I type -- or sometimes the Viking version).

Yes, thanks! (Singing is optional. :))

[Oren Grad]

If any of you find a way to track the poster to a physical address I bet there is someone in the area who can let them know just how much they are 'appreciated'.

Haven't had time to investigate them all, but many in this latest storm have had IP addresses that track to Bangladesh.

[Kirk Gittings]

If any of you find a way to track the poster to a physical address I bet there is someone in the area who can let them know just how much they are 'appreciated'.

These are the web equivalent of a sociopath. They could give a shit what anyone thinks of them.

[stawastawa]

I think that having one reply in the thread that flags it as spam is smart too - incase someone is sleepy it might prevent them from clicking a link and regretting it.

[Tin Can]

Feedback is a bad place to discuss spammers.

They take great pleasure in schadenfreude.

I suggest we use the Lounge, where they are not.

[Ralph Barker]

I think that having one reply in the thread that flags it as spam is smart too - incase someone is sleepy it might prevent them from clicking a link and regretting it.

A single reply along the lines of "Spam, reported" also alerts other members to the fact that the post has already been reported, so they are less likely to report it as well. (We only need one report to deal with the problem, not multiples.)

[Ralph Barker]

Feedback is a bad place to discuss spammers.

They take great pleasure in schadenfreude.

I suggest we use the Lounge, where they are not.

The moderators are discussing this. Stay tuned.

[Vaughn]

A single reply along the lines of "Spam, reported" also alerts other members to the fact that the post has already been reported, so they are less likely to report it as well. (We only need one report to deal with the problem, not multiples.)
Will do! I was reluctant to post on them at all.

[rdenney]

While we discuss it, let me suggest some standard practice:

When you see spam, use the Report button immediately. The word SPAM is all we need in the explanation. Do not post in the thread and there is no need to further acknowledge the existence of the spammer. NEVER click a spam link. Yes, my advice is a bit different than Ralph's recommendation of a single "spam reported" post, and it is true that a spam attack during heavy use times can generate a dozen emails in a few minutes. But I'd rather have that than providing any user name at all for a spammer to latch onto.

As soon as one of us gets that report (and it is emailed to the mods), whichever one of us gets to it first takes a look. If it is indeed spam, which it usuall is, we run "Spam-O-Matic" on it. Spam-O-Matic bans the user permanently, permanently removes from the database all the threads and posts started by the user, and reports the user's login name and IP address to StopForumSpam. Forums that participate in that service (including ours) use their database to prevent those user names and IP addresses from registering in the first place. This requires the spammer to spend an additional five seconds to change their name and spoof a different IP address, which they routinely do anyway.

Spammers do not care about schadenfreude. They only care about spam posts--that's what they are paid to place. They are long gone to the next forum by the time we zap them.

Rick "not really seeing much need to discuss spammers at all" Denney

[Jim Jones]

What if a legitimate LFPF member has his credentials stolen and used to spam the forum? is there a safeguard against this?

[Jac@stafford.net]

What if a legitimate LFPF member has his credentials stolen and used to spam the forum? is there a safeguard against this?

Having programmed lists and forums, my guess is that an appeal from a member would be quickly verified and remedied. The mods have a LOT of unvisible information regarding posts.

Rest well on this issue. IMHO.
.

[rdenney]

If a long-time member posts obvious spam, we don't use Spam-O-Matic. We will delete the post, and we may suspend the membership until we find out what happened and get it sorted out.

Spam-O-Matic is reserved for those who post obvious spam as their first post on the forum, which is 99% of the spam we get.

Rick "nothing to worry about" Denney