Spam & the new text editor

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

Is it just a coincidence or has the recent increase in spam posting only started since the change to the new text editor. There were another batch of spam posts again this morning.

Maybe our far eastern friends are targeting forums using this free software as they assume if a forum can't pay for a text editor they also can't afford decent spam filters?

Would be interested to hear comments from those more in the know about computers.

J

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

[Gray62Participant @gray62]

It's about time the forum owners i.e. MHS started taking positive steps to combat these spam postings. Start by blocking the Chinese IP subnets at the firewalls, this can be quite easily done with a request to the hosting provider. Spam filtering is more dificult, looking for key words or phrases would most likely not have stopped these postings.

It may now be necessary to start using one time only moderation so that any new users posts are checked before being allowed on the site. This would delay genuine new users but I think we would all rather have that than trawling through endless spam to find the posts we reall want to see.

Graeme

[TerrydParticipant @terryd72465]

Hi,

There are mechanisms to reduce this sort of thing such as deferred membership which ensure posters have to wait or give good reasons for membership or confirm requests for membership via email. On this forum anyone can register without any checks so this will continue. This spammer now has 5 of the 10 visible threads and no moderators to act in time.  Remember that we're not allowed to flag them up using the 'Report'.

Terry

Edited By Terryd on 05/03/2012 09:22:09

[Ian S CParticipant @iansc]

We don't get half the amount of spam here as we get on another site I use, there the come in batches, some with a whole heap of advertising, others with a comment about a thread, by someone who does'nt know anything about the subject, then a link to another site, anything from second hand cars, to wedding dresses. Ian S C

[Gray62Participant @gray62]

Posted by Terryd on 05/03/2012 09:18:00:

Remember that we're not allowed to flag them up using the 'Report'.

Terry

Why on earth not? Surely that is what the Report function is there for!

And who says we are not 'allowed'

CB

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

See David's second post

http://www.model-engineer.co.uk/forums/postings.asp?th=65841

[CJWParticipant @cjw]

David's post says it's not necessary, rather than not allowed. However, I'll agree that saying it's not allowed sounds much more exciting.

Chris

[Terry LaneParticipant @terrylane]

Anoother thing that helps is having a number of moderators, strategicly placed in different time zones rather than a single mod trying to keep up with post from around the globe.

[ChrisHParticipant @chrish]

I was – still am really – a moderator on another forum and we used to get absolutely masses of spam – mainly internet drugs, 'cheap' finance (if that is not a contradiction in terms) and porn. The forum used to get so flooded with the stuff you couldn't get to the genuine threads.

We eventually stopped it by ensuring that new members registrations went to a moderator for authorisation first – if we didn't like the look of them they were binned! – and secondly we put in a question which required someone to answer. Most spam get done by bots (or whatever they are called, automated wotsits anyway) and they don't do answering questions, even simply ones.

That would help here, not that I have seen any spam here, probably don't look at the right time, but if it happens as it obviously does then action must be taken to stop it.

Chris

[clivelParticipant @clivel]

Posted by ChrisH on 05/03/2012 19:56:42:

That would help here, not that I have seen any spam here, probably don't look at the right time, but if it happens as it obviously does then action must be taken to stop it.

Fortunately for the many UK based members, the spam is mostly posted in the early hours of your morning.

However, even though the spam is deleted promptly it still has unpleasant side effects – As a result of the pathetic search system used by this embarrassingly poor forum software, the only way to search the messages is via Google. For example this evening I was looking for information on Sievert torches. The google search term that I used: sievert site:http://www.model-engineer.co.uk/forums/ was worse than useless because google returned pages of results, all to presumably now deleted spam.

[Ed DuffnerParticipant @edduffner79357]

Just a humble opinion.

I'm just starting out in model engineering and wish my Dad was still around to ask the thousands of questions I might have about engineering in general. He worked at Rolls Royce for ~40 years on the Pegasus engine test beds amongst other things and was a mine of information. Now he's not here I really appreciate the help and advice I get from a free forum such as this one and I'm not really too bothered about the forum software used, nor feel the need to moan about it. For me it's about the value of the shared knowledge and humor and maybe I'll make a friend or two along the way. With the anonymity of forums it's all to easy to bleat out frustrations. We sometimes forget that there are real people at the other end(s).

[Ken JohnstonParticipant @kenjohnston10955]

A bit off post, I know.

Re Ed Duffner's post.

I was given a 1" M & W mic when I was about 12 by a friend of my mothers who had been an inspector, I believe, in the RR Merlin plant in Hillington, Glasgow, during the war. I still use it a lot but lost the thimble locking device years ago when I disassembled it to clean and reset it. A very fine roller, I think it was.

[Ian S CParticipant @iansc]

Have a look in suggested online resources, there is a thread there by coco huai. Ian S C

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