Private message spam

weshowe · Post by **weshowe** » Sat Aug 23, 2008 2:10 am

I had a similar attack (Wow related) on my forums.

I was fortunate to catch it very soon after it happened and delete it all before any of the search engine bots showed up. That's all they want, more links to their site to raise the search ranking.

Maybe the great minds at Google can come up with a way to negate the value of these links, and thus reduce the incentive.

<* Wes *>

reptor · Post by **reptor** » Mon Sep 01, 2008 9:21 pm

I think this

http://www.ogre3d.org/phpBB2/viewtopic. ... highlight=

herryjohn
Newcomer
Joined: 25 Aug 2008
Posts: 1

http://www.ogre3d.org/phpBB2/profile.ph ... le&u=18540

looks like a spammer. There is a link in the signature (which I don't click to check what is behind it).

DarkCoder2 · Post by **DarkCoder2** » Mon Sep 01, 2008 9:41 pm

Heh, its just a link to some site where u can buy game gold & currency for MMO games instead of going and earning it in the game.
Looks like a spammer how though? I admit the response was a little short, but is kind if relevant to the subject as the post mentioned you could find them because they would have too many laptops.

The only possible thing that makes it even odd is the fact there is a link in the signature, but I don't think having a link in your signature is incriminating evidence, I have joined many sites with a signature and made only a few posts, there could be any number of reasons why they have that link, could be there site, they may work there or they may just like the site tbh.

If they were posting about how great the site was or asking me to click it then I guess I would class it as spam.

Post by **haffax** » Mon Sep 01, 2008 9:55 pm

@reptor, I'd classify this as 100% pure SPAM. Thanks for reporting it.

Removed.

@DarkCoder2, how is "lol, nice" a sensible response to anything?

These one-post-spammers are the most difficult to notice. If there are ten posts in a row by the same guy, it is almost certainly spam, but one simple post can be missed easily.

phpbb2 is lacking in administration tools, it really is annoying to only being able to erase posts one by one.
I'd love it, if there was an option to delete all posts by a user when you delete that user's account. Would make thing much easier.

DarkCoder2 · Post by **DarkCoder2** » Mon Sep 01, 2008 11:34 pm

It's not sensible, I didn't use that word because it clearly isn't, It's only the very barely relevance to the subject, all be it an inappropriate and silly one that I couldn't have said 100% it was spam, purely because everyday thousands of new people go on the internet and join community's for the first time and I have given many users the benefit of the doubt with a 24 hour warning that became active members of the community on other forums that I moderate in the past, and would have simply deleted the url, asked for the post and future posts to be more sensible and then banned the account in 24-48 hour's if the user did not make the post more sensible.

I guess I am just too soft, hehe

Post by **xavier** » Tue Sep 02, 2008 4:21 am

There is no argument here -- the same WoW-gold spammers follow the same pattern whether they post once or six dozen times (and frankly, I don't know why they stop at 7-10 like they normally -- one has to believe that once the account is created, that there is some automatic means of posting that takes over). The contents of the post are irrelevant -- the signature contains all that anyone needs to know (although often they also litter the actual posts with the WoW-or-insert-RPG-name-here-Gold URLs too).

My current process is to go to the user's profile, and click "view all posts by this user". If it's clear that the "WoW gold" posts are recent, then the account may have been hijacked, and other processes take over from there. In the past 15 cases I've addressed of this crap, the account is brand new and the posts are all the same thing, so yes, I wish there were a way to delete all posts by a user when I see one of these -- we're not getting paid for this shit, so I'd like it at least to be easier.

DarkCoder2 · Post by **DarkCoder2** » Tue Sep 02, 2008 5:01 pm

I hear ya xavier, devoting time and energy to keep a forum healthy and friendly is one thing, but having to do deal with spam just sucks up time.

This may help you http://www.codez.co.uk/blog/?p=15

P.S, Came across this, http://mnogo.truden.com/archives/151.html works by using java script on the post page to do some magic in the background using javascript, users won't even notice it and many automated posters are known not to use javascript, could prove to be effective, though it does require javascript to be enabled.

Post by **xavier** » Tue Sep 02, 2008 5:03 pm

*points Sinbad to the blog post*

reptor · Post by **reptor** » Fri Sep 05, 2008 5:40 pm

Spam:

ubeatyggo
Newcomer
Joined: 26 Aug 2008
Posts: 8

Edit: OK it's noticed already...

xadhoom · Post by **xadhoom** » Tue Sep 09, 2008 10:22 am

This is a strange one:

http://www.ogre3d.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=44256

madmarx · Post by **madmarx** » Tue Sep 09, 2008 10:48 am

user :
080907k

on forum :
http://www.ogre3d.org/phpBB2/viewtopic. ... 375#304375

xadhoom · Post by **xadhoom** » Tue Sep 09, 2008 10:55 am

madmarx wrote:user :
080907k

And here: http://www.ogre3d.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=43482
And here: http://www.ogre3d.org/phpBB2/viewtopic. ... &start=100
And here: http://www.ogre3d.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=43690
Ok I stop adding...

The bot is very fast!

xadhoom · Post by **xadhoom** » Tue Sep 09, 2008 11:12 am

They are talking to each other:

http://www.ogre3d.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=44259

User: j_strators
User: sehrishmus

captnoord · Post by **captnoord** » Tue Sep 09, 2008 11:18 am

yup spam spam spam....

captnoord · Post by **captnoord** » Wed Sep 10, 2008 2:17 pm

spam spam spam
http://www.ogre3d.org/phpBB2/viewtopic. ... highlight=

Post by **pjcast** » Wed Sep 10, 2008 3:45 pm

captnoord wrote:spam spam spam
http://www.ogre3d.org/phpBB2/viewtopic. ... highlight=

Already taken care of

johnhpus · Post by **johnhpus** » Tue Sep 23, 2008 8:33 pm

not pm spam, but another post http://www.ogre3d.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=43848

Post by **xavier** » Tue Sep 23, 2008 9:06 pm

johnhpus · Post by **johnhpus** » Fri Oct 17, 2008 8:17 am

Not sure where to post this or if it even helps, but here you go: http://www.ogre3d.org/phpBB2/viewtopic. ... 235#310235

Post by **haffax** » Fri Oct 17, 2008 8:26 am

Thanks johnhpus. Removed.

johnhpus · Post by **johnhpus** » Sat Oct 18, 2008 7:26 am

Another http://www.ogre3d.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=45191

Post by **Kencho** » Sat Oct 18, 2008 9:57 am

He's gone now

iigor · Post by **iigor** » Tue Oct 21, 2008 3:41 pm

feimotion338
not pm, but also spamed in forum.

xadhoom · Post by **xadhoom** » Wed Oct 22, 2008 8:37 am

jackix090

http://www.ogre3d.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=45082

johnhpus · Post by **johnhpus** » Sat Oct 25, 2008 7:54 am

5 spam messages from this user in the recruitment forum http://www.ogre3d.org/phpBB2/profile.ph ... le&u=19232

edit:
And actually there are many more in other forums too.