MonkeyStop - Auto-Moderation of Spammer Keywords and URLs by postcount

[tweakmonkey]

Description
-----------
A quick but effective hack that lets you set keywords that will flag posts and set as Moderated, requiring approval from a mod/supermod/admin before they're visible to users. You can also set the number of URLs to be allowed per post to stop flooding from spammers. Additionally, you can configure
the number of posts required to avoid the moderation, so the filter only effects new users to your forum.

Installation
------------
Import product-monkeystop.xml (ACP / vBulletin Options / Manage Products / [Add/Import Product])

Usage
------------
Configure the product in ACP / vBulletin Options / vBulletin Options / General Settings. (scroll to the bottom)
New threads and posts containing the offenses will automatically be moderated.
You can view moderated threads in ACP / Moderation / Moderate Threads. You should also see an icon in the thread postbit and forum display if the post is moderated (see screenshot).

Since most spammers register then spam your board while their post count is low, it may be effective to leave the default values (0 URLs allowed until post count is 3) or even up the post count requirement. If you wish to allow some links, change URLs to 1 or 2 for example.

!!! Warning !!!
------------
If you allow keyword auto-moderation, your users will receive an "Invalid Thread" message when they use a flagged word on new threads because it's a moderated thread. However this error can be customized here:
Admin Panel / Phrase Manager / phrase type: Error Messages / invalidid (page 15 or so of the errors)
I added: <br/><br/>If you received this message immediately after posting a new thread, there's a good chance your message was flagged as spam. Please read this thread for more info. ... and supplied a link (http://tweak3d.net/forums/showthread.php?t=8768) for my users explaining why their post was moderated.

Credits
-----------
This is a hack of the "Auto Moderation by Keywords" mod by Andreas (https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/member.php?u=47102)
Thanks go out for his great mod -- if only I could PM or e-mail him to thank him directly! I only made minor changes to the mod to allow it to work with vBulletin 3.6.0 (by default it wouldn't work on new threads) and to auto-moderate posts URLs.
So give him credit if you think it's cool, but his PM box is full. ;)
Dan "Tweak Monkey" Kennedy

History
-----------
v1.0.1: Added minimum post count option
v1.0.0: Initial release

[Lionel]

Based on the assumption that spammers always use a URL, can I just set http:// as a keyword?

Can it be made so only members posting the first time is subjected to that?

[Protoman]

this is almost identical to andreas code.

[tweakmonkey]

Based on the assumption that spammers always use a URL, can I just set http:// as a keyword?

This would make any post containing a URL be moderated. If that's your goal, yes you can do that.


Can it be made so only members posting the first time is subjected to that?

Edit - just added this feature.

[tweakmonkey]

this is almost identical to andreas code.

It's based on his code and that's why I gave him so much credit and mention that several times throughout the post and documentation. ;) His version did not work for me, so I fixed it for everyone else.

I tried PMing Andreas to request an update but his PM box is full. I also tried e-mailing him but his address is not listed. His web site was too confusing for me (as it's not English and some pop-ups that got in the way) so I couldn't find a way to contact him about this mod.

He hadn't updated his mod in over a year and doesn't list that he supports it -- meaning that anyone using VB 3.6+ doesn't have the option to use it (and it's a great concept for sure). I figured this could help some people and I give him all the credit for the original mod in both my post and the readme.txt. I just gave it a slightly different name so I can keep developing it without conflicting with his version -- if I make more changes I'll post them up and anyone can use them / modify them as well to continue developing this concept.

I hope this is acceptable, I really just wanted to help the community.

Here are the changes I made in case you were curious:
---
1) Andreas' code did not work with VB 3.6.0 (at least for me) because the $this->fetch_field('pagetext') field seemed invalid when posting new threads, so his mod did not stop new threads from being posted (the biggest problem with spammers). I changed this to $this->fetch_field('pagetext', 'post') which fixed this.

2) I added two alternate conditional statements that check how many times the string "http:" is contained in the post: if (substr_count($this->fetch_field('pagetext', 'post'), 'http:') > $this->registry->options['automodurls']) If there's a more effective method to prevent a user from posting links I can modify it -- it was really just a last minute idea but it works well (see screenshot).

3) I added the # of URLs to the plugin as a new setting so it can be defined in the admin panel.

4) Andreas code said to use "colon" to separate the keywords, but it requires commas.

5) There was at least one typo and some hard to digest instructions that I cleaned up. I also re-wrote the readme with info on how to warn users their thread was blocked, since that wasn't addressed in the original.

6) It now also checks the post count of the user and only filters posts if they are below the threshold.

[ZacUSNYR]

Great idea! I don't have any spam problems on my site but if it comes up i'll remember this :)

[tweakmonkey]

Can it be made so only members posting the first time is subjected to that?

Just an update, I added this feature. Please let me know how it works for you. There is now an additional option to set the number of posts a user must have to avoid being moderated (so you could set it to 3 for example and the users must have 3 posts before the keywords/URLs are flagged).

[Bad Bunny]

This sounds really useful. I hope there is no issue with you developing this. It's a very nice thing to share it. May use this in the near future.

[furst]

Is there any chance of adding a feature to this that would automatically move posts containing predefined words to an assigned forum? It would save me a whole lot of time :P

[zooki]

this sounds promising, i have occassional spammers, mostly trying to sell drugs

[tweakmonkey]

Is there any chance of adding a feature to this that would automatically move posts containing predefined words to an assigned forum? It would save me a whole lot of time :P

Ah, so instead of moderating it, it would move it to say, a dump forum? I can probably implement that when I have time.

[tweakmonkey]

I've found it's also effective to add the keyword "www" to the filter, so if low-postcount spammers don't post the full URL it will still block their posts.

[IrPr]

Finally Done!

Thanks Dan, i was waiting for this

[Smoothie]

Can someone post a screenshot of "Configure the product" settings?

[tweakmonkey]

Can someone post a screenshot of "Configure the product" settings?

Check the first post now, I've added it as an attachment.

[adwade]

This is a very nifty, but powerful modification. Many Thanxx for creating and sharing it with all of us!

[adwade]

Well I broke it somehow.:confused:

I imported the .xml file, set the critera in the AdminCP, and then edited the invalidid phrase and it worked fine at first.

Then I went and created a new discussion thread (similar to yours) that the invalidid phrase error could point them towards. Lastly, I went back and re-edited the invalidid phrase with the address of that newly created thread.

Once I did that, I no longer get an error notice anymore when I post spam now.:disappointed: The MOD still works, in that it seems to perfectly catch what needs to be held for moderation...it's just it doesn't tell the author anything about what's being done.(i.e. Doesn't seem like the invalidid error msg is being called upon any longer)

After posting, the screen refreshes and you're brought back to the thread, but w/o the spam message showing up you just posted.(as it's being held for moderation now)

I went back and reset the invalidid phrase to original and it didn't help any. I went back and re-imported the .xml file and it didn't help. Any ideas as to what else could be wrong??

EDIT: Nothing is broke, I just didn't understand how the MOD works. Turns out it still works perfectly for NEW THREADS. It just doesn't show the person posting a REPLY or QUICK REPLY the error message as I thought it would. In either case, it still marks the message awaiting moderation as it should though. :up:

[Smoothie]

Check the first post now, I've added it as an attachment.Is is all or none for the settings? In other words can you set just one setting and leave the rest blank?

[tweakmonkey]

They are individually checked except postcount.

If you set the keywords to blank, it will only use the number of URLs and post count.
If you don't want to use the URL option set it very high, like 50 per post.
If you don't want to use the postcount option, set it to 0.

[tweakmonkey]

Well I broke it somehow.:confused:

After posting, the screen refreshes and you're brought back to the thread, but w/o the spam message showing up you just posted.(as it's being held for moderation now)

Are you using the Phrase Manager or the Language Manager?

I changed the message here: Languages & Phrases -> Phrase Manager -> Phrase Type: Error Messages -> invalidid

I noticed the option exists in the Language Manager as well but it does not seem to make the error message change. This error message should be independent of the mod -- meaning if you uninstalled the mod you should be able to change this error to "I eat sandwiches" or something and see it whenever a thread is not found or is moderated.

Ideally I'll mod it to give the same message given when a user posts a message that is flagged as moderated, but I don't know where to do this yet...

[Lionel]

I am very happy with this hack. I think it's the best spam stopper I've seen so far. Based on the principle that those spammers will register for the sole purpose to post a URL, I have been able to stop all of them.

Anyway I came here to thank you again, but I saw it was updated yesterday. I am curious to know what was changed, because it works for me.

[tweakmonkey]

I believe it says I updated it because I added a screenshot. Sorry for the confusion. I will do a mass-message if there are major updates. If you have any suggestions or run into problems please PM or reply here. Thanks and I'm glad you like it! :)

[kether1]

Hi Tweakmonkey!

I installed this mod (3.6.0) and am having a different problem and a similar problem as the one that adwade was/is having.

1st. the mod worked just like you said it would. So I too adjusted the error message. The only problem in my Admincp >Language & Phrases > Phrase Manager > Phrase Type: (I did not have the "phrase type: Error Messages / invalidid" as a choice) SO, to find the actual phrase that was coming up, I created a new thread and got the error message and then searched in Phrases and found the phrase to edit. (invalidid > *inside* Front end Error Messages [probably the place you meant for us to edit in the first place).

Anyway, so I make the change as you suggest. I test the mod with a new thread using a spam keyword. IT WORKS! Then I test with a url. IT WORKS 2! I get really excited as I think - "Finally the end of my spammer issue". BUT then, I test the 'Quick Reply" function and the mod works, but posts the message for the spammer to see, just not for other members or guests -- and the spammer doesn't get the error message. It just appears that the post worked. The other issue is that when I go to moderate the post, I cannot see it in the regular forum pages although in the New Post indicator it shows a new post - but when I click the link to the new posts, nothing shows up. I have to log into the admincp to moderate the post.

2nd. issue. So, the quick reply made me try the post reply function. It performed the say way as the quick reply.

So, long story short: This mod seems only to work on New Threads. It sort of works on replies, but not like you intended --at least for me.

If I have screwed something up, let me know. Thanks so much for this modification! Even with the two small problems I have with it, it will help slow down the spam problem.

Warm Regards,
Kether

[tweakmonkey]

Hi Tweakmonkey!

I installed this mod (3.6.0) and am having a different problem and a similar problem as the one that adwade was/is having.

1st. the mod worked just like you said it would. So I too adjusted the error message. The only problem in my Admincp >Language & Phrases > Phrase Manager > Phrase Type: (I did not have the "phrase type: Error Messages / invalidid" as a choice) SO, to find the actual phrase that was coming up, I created a new thread and got the error message and then searched in Phrases and found the phrase to edit. (invalidid > *inside* Front end Error Messages [probably the place you meant for us to edit in the first place).

I can't really explain this. I just changed the value again to confirm and for me it's where I mentioned. Here's what I changed it to and what showed up:If you are a new user and received this message immediately after posting a new thread, it may have to be approved before it shows up on the site. Please read this thread for more info.

I'm not sure why it's different for some people. I don't have a Front End Error Messages (I have a Front End Redirect Messages though). In Front End Redirect Messages I do not have an invalidid. Maybe it has to do with the upgrade path we've all taken since we first installed VB. I think I started with VB 3.5.2.

Anyway, so I make the change as you suggest. I test the mod with a new thread using a spam keyword. IT WORKS! Then I test with a url. IT WORKS 2! I get really excited as I think - "Finally the end of my spammer issue". BUT then, I test the 'Quick Reply" function and the mod works, but posts the message for the spammer to see, just not for other members or guests -- and the spammer doesn't get the error message. It just appears that the post worked.
The post should be a different color indicating it's been set to Moderated. I don't know how we can flag it differently -- perhaps we could style it by adding the word "This post was moderated for *** reason" or something? See below...

The other issue is that when I go to moderate the post, I cannot see it in the regular forum pages although in the New Post indicator it shows a new post - but when I click the link to the new posts, nothing shows up. I have to log into the admincp to moderate the post.

This sounds like another issue entirely with your Vbulletin installation. Although using the AdminCP is probably the best idea to moderate posts, you should definitely see moderated posts in threads if you're an administrator/moderator. If you set a specific reply to Moderated status (Unapprove Posts with the dropdown menu) with an administrator account does it disappear?

2nd. issue. So, the quick reply made me try the post reply function. It performed the say way as the quick reply.

So, long story short: This mod seems only to work on New Threads. It sort of works on replies, but not like you intended --at least for me.

If I have screwed something up, let me know. Thanks so much for this modification! Even with the two small problems I have with it, it will help slow down the spam problem.

Warm Regards,
Kether

I guess the best solution would be to style the moderated post so when a user's reply is moderated it flags it clearly to the user somehow (instead of just changing the color in the CSS or however you have it styled). This is more of an issue with Vbulletin than with this plugin though. I could add an option that only flags new Threads as moderated instead of posts - that might be more effective since spammers tend to always start new threads. A quick way to do this would be to Uninstall the plugin "Auto-Moderation by Keywords and URL: Replies". Threads will still be moderated.

[furst]

Ah, so instead of moderating it, it would move it to say, a dump forum? I can probably implement that when I have time.
Thanks, I'll be looking forward to it :)

[adwade]

Are you using the Phrase Manager or the Language Manager?

I changed the message here: Languages & Phrases -> Phrase Manager -> Phrase Type: Error Messages -> invalidid

Yes, that's where I was making the changes at. It saves the msg alright, but what is going on (I think) is the error msg isn't always displayed because it's not told to do so. For instance, here's how my board is acting...

Case #1 - A Spam type NEW THREAD is created using the URL feature (i.e. ) and everything seems to work just fine. In that the posting of such a msg will ellicit an error msg and mark the msg for moderation.

Case #2 - A Spam type NEW THREAD is created containing a word in the keyword list.(i.e. 'www') Error msg is generated and thread is correctly moved into awaiting moderation status.

Case #3 - A Spam type REPLY will mark the msg for moderation, but [U]will not give an error message IF for instance you enter a LINK w/o using the URL feature -or- if you enter a LINK with the URL feature. The reply is immediately hidden from the user and awaits moderation.

Case #4 - A Spam type QUICK REPLY will mark the msg for moderation, but will not give an error message, yet the QUICK REPLY is immediately shown to the one posting it. If he reloads the page, or revisits the thread later the QUICK REPLY msg does not show up.(as it's awaiting moderation)

So from what I can tell, the MOD always works correctly to move the msg to awaiting moderation status. It's just that if/when using reply (Case #3) or quick reply (Case #4) nothing trips the error msg to be displayed to the poster.

[tweakmonkey]

Yes, that's where I was making the changes at. It saves the msg alright, but what is going on (I think) is the error msg isn't always displayed because it's not told to do so. For instance, here's how my board is acting...

Case #1 - A Spam type NEW THREAD is created using the URL feature (i.e. ) and everything seems to work just fine. In that the posting of such a msg will ellicit an error msg and mark the msg for moderation.

Case #2 - A Spam type NEW THREAD is created containing a word in the keyword list.(i.e. 'www') Error msg is generated and thread is correctly moved into awaiting moderation status.

Case #3 - A Spam type REPLY will mark the msg for moderation, but [U]will not give an error message IF for instance you enter a LINK w/o using the URL feature -or- if you enter a LINK with the URL feature. The reply is immediately hidden from the user and awaits moderation.

Case #4 - A Spam type QUICK REPLY will mark the msg for moderation, but will not give an error message, yet the QUICK REPLY is immediately shown to the one posting it. If he reloads the page, or revisits the thread later the QUICK REPLY msg does not show up.(as it's awaiting moderation)

So from what I can tell, the MOD always works correctly to move the msg to awaiting moderation status. It's just that if/when using reply (Case #3) or quick reply (Case #4) nothing trips the error msg to be displayed to the poster.


Ah, gotcha. I don't know a solution for this problem yet. Scroll up a bit to see my last reply to the other person that asked this question. The possible options I see are:
1) Change the way moderated messages are flagged to users if it's their own message (maybe style the CSS differently or something).
2) Disable the moderation feature on Replies (since most spammers tend to post new threads, at least on my forums). This can be done by uninstalling the specific plugin Auto Moderation for New Replies.

I'll try to think of a better way to implement #1. Adding another warning that a user's reply has been moderated would involve some serious code hack as far as I can tell. I only use the mod for low post counts and so far haven't run into this problem yet. My forum is relatively small though with around 110,000 posts / 280 active users (~1300 members).

[adwade]

I'll try to think of a better way to implement #1.
Well, my Case #1 & Case #2 are working as I expect they should. So 'I' don't think (from what I understand so far) anything needs changing for them. It's only my Case 3 & 4 that can leave a poster in the dark as to what's going on from their point of view.

Adding another warning that a user's reply has been moderated would involve some serious code hack as far as I can tell.
Ohhh, that's bad news then. Sorry to learn of it...which is not to be confused with me understanding what you really mean.(i.e. complete newbie here)

I only use the mod for low post counts and so far haven't run into this problem yet.
Understand, and I too only plan to use it for low post counts as well.

Anyway, it's a TREMENDOUS MOD! I can't wait for Nov so I can nominate it for Hack of the Month. Can one nominate a Beta product for such??

[Neal-UK]

Is there a way to stop it moderating rss feeds?

[tweakmonkey]

Is there a way to stop it moderating rss feeds?

I wasn't aware it was moderating RSS feeds. I will have to look into this and get back to you.

[RMS-Chef]

Thanks for this!

Two suggestions. First, a "per forum" setting would be nice as I am not using this for SPAM issues but to block certain content. I think this would be a workaround for the RSS issues as well since I think most people have a seperate forum just for importing RSS feeds.

Second, and this is a long shot, it would be nice to be able to enter boolean-like commands in the keyword field. Examples:
-Adding quotes to a keyword to match only that word. Currently entering the word BOX seems to trigger moderation with such words as BOXING.
-Being able to use the (-) modifier. Such as WORD1,WORD2,-WORD3 and if the thread contains WORD1 or WORD2 but also WORD3 it would not trigger moderation.

Working great as is though, thanks again.

[Ratchet]

not sure if this has been pointed out yet but one way around this for the spammer is to make a legitimate post with no keyword triggers, then edit it to add the spam.

[goteamsgo]

It sounds great. I may give it a try soon.

Any comments on server performance impact?

One nice thing might be an additional option to "Apply to the Following Usergroups." So we're not using any processing power on established members who are unlikely to spam.

[lukemax]

Wow, this is cool, can I install this now, (disable it) And enable it when I need it?

[Lionel]

I just had an issue where send to friend was being exploited by unregistered to send out spam. I now made it that only registered can use send to friend, but I know that these guys will register so they keep on spamming.

Is there a way to prevent people with the minimum post to use send to friend?

[Lionel]

I suppose I could squeeze an error message between

if ($this->registry->userinfo['posts'] < $this->registry->options['automodpostcount']) {

here

}

at the proper hook in send message????

[cgchris99]

I have the post count set to 5. And when I have new user, it automatically goes to moderated even if there are not "bad" keywords in the post?

Is this the way it is supposed to work? I thought if they had no bad keywords it would not be moderated?

Thanks for any advice

[kyrnel]

Issue: The product is working like it says, but I am running into trouble.

A legitimate thread was flagged, so I approved it, but later the poster edited the first post, so the post was flagged and went back into the moderation queue. I was not able to approve the post. Nothing I could do would remove the moderation on that post until I disabled the product.

Any ideas?

[cashpath]

Could someone tell me how to stop this from moderating RSS feeds? (The feeds are being posted by admin)

[Lionel]

I've set the number of posts to 3. Lately, they've been coming and posting like 8, 10 times in a row, therefore bypassing the safety after 3 post.

Right now, I've increase it to 10 posts which is not really fair for the good new member.

Is there a way to automatically ban based on time that posts were made? For example the guy comes and make 3 or more flagged posts in less than 10 minutes for example, then it's obvious it's a spammer trying to flood so we ban him.

[Sal Collaziano]

Could someone tell me how to stop this from moderating RSS feeds? (The feeds are being posted by admin)

This is a legitmate complaint.. Most of my RSS posts (by my admin account) are being moderated.. This is a bug that needs to be fixed... I run this on several busy message boards and it really would be nice to have a fix for this...

Thank you...

[Sal Collaziano]

Bump! Any hope for a fix for this bug? Please?

[adwade]

Ideally I'll mod it to give the same message given when a user posts a message that is flagged as moderated, but I don't know where to do this yet...

Any luck with discovering this yet? LOVE the MOD, only wish it gave some sort of indication to a moderated user when they REPLY to a post.

[Adrian Schneider]

Check out my hack here,
https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthread.php?t=131568

It does essentially the same thing, but uses a different hook so it will only catch new threads/posts that are done through the new post/thread editor rather than RSS feeds too. Also, if the post is set as awaiting moderation, they will get the expected redirection message instead of the error.

[adwade]

Check out my hack here,
https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthread.php?t=131568

It does essentially the same thing, but uses a different hook so it will only catch new threads/posts that are done through the new post/thread editor rather than RSS feeds too. Also, if the post is set as awaiting moderation, they will get the expected redirection message instead of the error.

Will do, Thanxx for the HeadsUp! :D

[adwade]

If you allow keyword auto-moderation, your users will receive an "Invalid Thread" message when they use a flagged word on new threads because it's a moderated thread. However this error can be customized here:
Admin Panel / Phrase Manager / phrase type: Error Messages / invalidid

This works just as described, but the redirection is so rapid a user can't read it. Is there any way to have it pause (i.e. like click to continue) so the user would have time to read the error message and then be able to Click on the explanation post as to what's going on & why?

[koolasia]

can we have a feature so that after posting the spammer can see his/her thread but others cant

[adwade]

...the redirection is so rapid a user can't read it. Is there any way...so the user would have time to read the error message...

Short of having this, I rememberd I had installed Cyb - Prevent Newbies from Posting to Wrong Forum (https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthread.php?t=122994) at one time and I just happened to remember it has a feature wherein the new user MUST click on a CONTINUE button before their new post is processed.

Since Cybernetec allows one to customize the phrases used for that MOD I was able to put a NOTICE in there to New Users that they are not able to have LINKS in their posts right off the bat. Not perfect, but it serves my needs for now.

[Cyburbia]

This is a great mod, but I'm finding that some spam posts with URLs slipping through. If it doensn't have the http:// prefix, it bypasses moderation and is posted immediately.

Suggestion: use a custom phrase, instead of the standard vbulletin invalidid phrase.

[DiverTree]

I have the post count set to 3, the url set to 3, and a whole slew of keywords seperated by a comma without a space. When a new user registers ... ninty percent of the time it places them into the moderation queue even if there are no flagged keywords or url's in the post. i just upped the url option to 10 in hopes that it fixes the problem im having ... if not then ill have to uninstall it. its really discouraging to a vetran poster joining a new forum to have there non offencive posts placed into a moderation queue. any suggestions? i really like the concept of this hack and appreaciate the work you put into it ... thank you. :)

[tweakmonkey]

Hey guys,
Thanks for the great feedback on this mod. I'm glad it's worked for some of you. I use it every day still without any changes since I uploaded it here and it prevents almost all of my spam. The reason I created this mod was to make my life easier on a small-medium size (200 active member) forum. I haven't touched the code since October because I have other projects I'm more interested in and it works for my needs, but I will read all the replies and address issues when I get a chance.

The biggest thing it seems people want is a better way for them to notify the users that their posts have been moderated. I agree, this is one feature I should probably add to this plugin and I would like to add this. If anyone knows an effective way this could be done I'd give their suggestion a try.

[tweakmonkey]

A quick search turned up this link. I will take a look at it tomorrow because I'm about to get some sleep:
http://www.vbulletin.com/forum/showthread.php?t=199233

It may have the answer to your questions.

BTW, I accidentally voted "Terrible, 1-star" for my mod, which dropped the rating significantly. :)

[tweakmonkey]

This last link will fix the problem for *all* new replies, but I don't know where I'd select it for moderated threads specifically.

Since most of my problems occur on new threads, my solution was to change:
Vbulletin CP -> Languages & Phrases -> Search in Phrases -> invalidid as a search term with Phrase Variable Name Only.

This is the message a user will see when a thread is dead or moderated. I simply added a bit about the possible moderation of new threads.

Another good idea might be to make a thread stickied in your forum such as "New to the forum? Read this" and explain the various rules (including spam moderation, URL posting, etc.) and include a link to it on that error page mentioned above.

Unless VB has a way to inform users their posts were moderated when using Quick Reply (for example) I don't know an easy way to remedy the issue for replies made by newbies.

[Cyburbia]

LLet me repost this:

This is a great mod, but I'm finding that some spam posts with URLs slipping through. If it doensn't have the http:// prefix, it bypasses moderation and is posted immediately.


Spammers posting URLs without http:// are still bypassing moderation.

[tweakmonkey]

If a link is missing http or www, it won't work at least, right? The only other thing I can suggest is expand the spam protection keyword list as much as possible. I thankfully haven't had the problem you're mentioning yet.

[ZombieAndy]

I Am interested in this hack as we do have some porn spammers attacking my forums at the moment, but i have the AE detector (https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthread.php?t=107566) installed aswell, very useful for members with more than one account.

However, i used to have this hack (https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthread.php?t=96018) installed, but it stopped the AE detector from working and dispite being asked many times, the creator did nothing about this.

So i want to know before i download or install anything and get my members hopes up, your hack isnt going to mess with the AE detector is it?

[bplinson]

For some reason I do not have the Admin Panel / Phrase Manager / phrase type: Error Messages / invalidid in my control panel. Was this supposed to be created when the plugin is installed?

Also what are some good keywords to use? I put in nokia and xbox since that is what a lot of spam contains. What other keywords are others using?

[tweakmonkey]

I just put nokia,viagra,qtek,sidekick,.com,www,free

Notice I put www and .com, just to double-protect against spammers.

I also added a couple required fields for all new users to enter, such as "Are you a robot (enter no)?" and "Do you want to register? (enter yes)" to make it less likely for a script to register automatically. Between these filters and the plugin mentioned here, I probably haven't had spam on my forum for over 6 months. We still ban a couple users each day for signing up and attempting to spam though. :)

[xuddcd]

It's really nice, just one feature I think would be very good to add is instead of being able to just block a word, I think being able to block an entire phrase would be good. Sometimes after banning a user they will make another account and make numerous posts saying like "the admin sucks!" or something.

[Fox2k]

Very nice..thank you!

[Sal Collaziano]

The message below seems to come and go too quickly. Is there any way to add in a delay or the ability to FORCE a user to click in order to proceed?

!!! Warning !!!
------------
If you allow keyword auto-moderation, your users will receive an "Invalid Thread" message when they use a flagged word on new threads because it's a moderated thread. However this error can be customized here:
Admin Panel / Phrase Manager / phrase type: Error Messages / invalidid (page 15 or so of the errors)

[adwade]

Yes there is, just see post #48 (https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showpost.php?p=1227201&postcount=48)

[induslady]

Hello,

Does this mod count the URL added in a member's signature while auto-moderating?

Or will it count only the URL in the body of the post?

I see lot of spammers including URLs in their signature and posting. I want to take care of it.

Thanks.

[sheryjutt]

:( Please For 3-7-0

[tweakmonkey]

:( Please For 3-7-0

I don't run 3.7 on my forums, but when I upgrade after the beta is completed, I'll make sure to update the plugin.

Hello,

Does this mod count the URL added in a member's signature while auto-moderating?

Or will it count only the URL in the body of the post?

I see lot of spammers including URLs in their signature and posting. I want to take care of it.

Thanks.

It does not work for signatures. I've seen other forums disable URLs in signatures using other tricks (maybe combine with user rank permissions), but i have never done this.

[diettalk]

Only problem is that it stops my RSS from posting.

[induslady]

Hello,

I have installed this mod and it is working great with most of the spammers posts with URLs getting moderated. It has reduced our manual moderation works so much and all admins/mods in my site just love this mod.

The auto-moderation keywords that I have included are "www, .com"
I see an issue with 2 cases:

1) Replies with quotes are getting moderated, if the quoted post had an external or internal link in it.
For example - refer the below posts. The quoted post 'Hello Ladies' had an internal link in it. The reply post 'hi everyone' though did not have a link, got moderated because the quote had one.



Hello Ladies!

One hallmark of a good community is how well members know and connect with each other.

Our community is far flung. We have members not only from India, US, UK, Sinagpore etc, we also have members from Republic of Congo, Cyprus, Iraq, Afghanistan, Botswana etc. Even though we are all geographically distant, we can use this forum to know each other well and build a personal connection. The internet can truly make distance disappear!

In an effort to build a tight-knit community, we are starting this thread named "Who am I?" where members can write their profile for others to read.

Let's know each other beyond login IDs!

Moderators of Indusladies!

Please note: This is part II of the "Who am I?" thread. Please go here for "Who am I? - Part I (http://www.indusladies.com/forums/new-member-area/22126-who-am-i-part-i.html)".

hi everyone
am not new to this site but long back i was using this site...hopefully i recalled my id..!!!.thx to indus admin..for .sending a reminder .... hi ladies...who are online

2. The 2nd post by the same member (who posted the above reference post) also got moderated. Though it did not have any link in it, it just had a smilie included from my forum.
I am guessing it got moderated because her 1st post still remains moderated, so the subsequent posts are also treated the same as spam and getting moderated.

Is this right?

Appreciate your clarifications on the above and some quick tips on handling it.

Thanks.

[tweakmonkey]

Only problem is that it stops my RSS from posting.

Vbulletin may treat the RSS Poster Bot as a user with 0 posts. I don't know a way around this yet, but when I update the forums on my site I will try to fix it. I'm waiting for 3.7 though -- I use the poster bot feature myself, but moderate what it posts, so this issue does not bother me. Sorry.

Hello,

I have installed this mod and it is working great with most of the spammers posts with URLs getting moderated. It has reduced our manual moderation works so much and all admins/mods in my site just love this mod.


Great, I'm glad it's working!

The auto-moderation keywords that I have included are "www, .com"
I see an issue with 2 cases:

1) Replies with quotes are getting moderated, if the quoted post had an external or internal link in it.
For example - refer the below posts. The quoted post 'Hello Ladies' had an internal link in it. The reply post 'hi everyone' though did not have a link, got moderated because the quote had one.


All the mod does is search the entire body of text in the post for the string. If it's contained in a quote or regular post it will still moderate this.

The reason this mod is still so effective for me is because my forums are not extremely busy and I have 5 moderators. Unfortunately, there is no way around this short of loosening up security.

2. The 2nd post by the same member (who posted the above reference post) also got moderated. Though it did not have any link in it, it just had a smilie included from my forum.
I am guessing it got moderated because her 1st post still remains moderated, so the subsequent posts are also treated the same as spam and getting moderated.

Is this right?

Appreciate your clarifications on the above and some quick tips on handling it.

Thanks.

Each post is moderated independently. If a user's post is moderated, the next post should not automatically be moderated unless it contains strings as mentioned, too. What's the post count option set to on your mod? I set mine very low, like 1 or 2. I wish there was a better way to fix this, but I don't know of one yet. My VB just fills up with spam without this mod so I find that manual moderation is the only solution.

I suppose I could change it so there's an option where it simply strips out links and doesn't moderate the posts if the postcount is under 10, but that wouldn't stop users from posting up huge spammy posts selling ipods, prescription medications, and so-on. :(

[Cyburbia]

Just wanted to say again that this is a great hack. It's stopped a lot of manual spam from appearing on my site. Thanks!

[Sal Collaziano]

It would actually be perfect if it didn't moderate the administrators RSS posts..

[Paul99999]

Great hack!

I am finding that when a post get automodded emails are still being sent to people who have subcribed to the thread with the spam in it. Is there any way of preventing the email being sent when the post is automodded?

Cheers!

[induslady]

Hello

I would like to know if it is possible to exclude self-domains from this mod.

Have set in my domain ( indusladies.com) to exclude all the URL's for members with post count less than 10. Now I would like to allow the URL for my domain ( indusladies.com) alone i.e. internal links to appear in their posts.
Let me know if it is possible?
Thanks.

[tweakmonkey]

Hello

I would like to know if it is possible to exclude self-domains from this mod.

Have set in my domain ( indusladies.com) to exclude all the URL's for members with post count less than 10. Now I would like to allow the URL for my domain ( indusladies.com) alone i.e. internal links to appear in their posts.
Let me know if it is possible?
Thanks.

Yes this would be quite easy. You could change the If statement in the plugin to check if your URL was included, and if so just ignore the rest of the plugin. I could edit this for you but I'm currently out of the country until the 19th, and probably can't get to it for a week or so after I return.

[induslady]

Hello
Looking forward to your reply at the earliest.
Thanks.

[Lizama]

Hi, is this mod compatible with vBulletin 3.7?

[tweakmonkey]

Hi, is this mod compatible with vBulletin 3.7?

Yes, I am using it with 3.7 and have no problems.

[Lizama]

Yes, I am using it with 3.7 and have no problems.

Thanks, I will install it

[induslady]

Hello coder
Hope you are back.

I would like to have this mod to exclude self-domains.

Have set in my domain ( indusladies.com) to exclude all the URL's for members with post count less than 10. Now I would like to allow the URL for my domain ( indusladies.com) alone i.e. internal links to appear in their posts.
Let me know.
Thanks.

[zooki]

I cant believe how few people use this mod, it is truly awesome!!

AM I missing something? Howcome not so many people use this? lol

I just came here to give this mod a BUMPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP and a Thanks to the creator

An Improvement would be for the threads that are moderated to be dumped into a Forum of my choice, like a Trash forum, for easy pruning

[tweakmonkey]

Thanks! I use it all the time still as well.

I will have to look into that request. I don't really have a lot of time to code but I'm sure it's doable. :P I tried setting up email notifications for it but my PHP skills were too weak at the time. :)

[thephonemall]

Will this work on 3.8?

[tweakmonkey]

Yes, I use the mod still and run the latest VB version.

[darkie79]

bump on this topic, as I had a question. Monkey, the hack is great, but I had a question...

When I updated my word list, is seems to be extracting words from other words, for instance, if I post the word "pass" and the filter is set to moderate it minus the "p", it pulls "pass" along with anything else including that word; however, if I moderate phrases such as "I am going to shoot you" then it will only moderate that specific phrase.

Any ideas?


FYI:

I modified the code to send an email using sendmail, which in turn emails my cellphone text email, which in turn texts my cell :) I did this for my entire support team...it's a great feature, but the random texts got annoying over words such as what I mentioned above.

[tweakmonkey]

bump on this topic, as I had a question. Monkey, the hack is great, but I had a question...

When I updated my word list, is seems to be extracting words from other words, for instance, if I post the word "pass" and the filter is set to moderate it minus the "p", it pulls "pass" along with anything else including that word; however, if I moderate phrases such as "I am going to shoot you" then it will only moderate that specific phrase.

Any ideas?

Hmm, that is a strange one. Can you paste in exactly what you put in your "Auto-Moderation Keywords" field in AdminCP? I didn't moderate phrases, but only single words (ie "viagra", "sex", or "http") and it has worked almost 100% to catch most spam. I'm assuming you're using it specifically for spam prevention.


FYI:

I modified the code to send an email using sendmail, which in turn emails my cellphone text email, which in turn texts my cell :) I did this for my entire support team...it's a great feature, but the random texts got annoying over words such as what I mentioned above.


I was meaning to add that feature! I'd love it if you sent the modified code my way so I can update the plugin with that feature for everyone... if you don't mind. ;) I'll remove your phone # and give credit etc. :)

[snoopy5]

Hi

I use this on vb 3.80 without any problems. One of the best mods out there!

BUT this mod does not work with visitor messages. I get currently massive spam over the visitor messages.

If this mod would include not only postings in forums, but also in visitor message with a user profile, this would help a lot!

Any chance to get this done with visitor messages?

[darkie79]

Hmm, that is a strange one. Can you paste in exactly what you put in your "Auto-Moderation Keywords" field in AdminCP? I didn't moderate phrases, but only single words (ie "viagra", "sex", or "http") and it has worked almost 100% to catch most spam. I'm assuming you're using it specifically for spam prevention.





I was meaning to add that feature! I'd love it if you sent the modified code my way so I can update the plugin with that feature for everyone... if you don't mind. ;) I'll remove your phone # and give credit etc. :)

Do you have an email? I'll just send a couple text files with the changes.

[tweakmonkey]

Hi

I use this on vb 3.80 without any problems. One of the best mods out there!

BUT this mod does not work with visitor messages. I get currently massive spam over the visitor messages.

If this mod would include not only postings in forums, but also in visitor message with a user profile, this would help a lot!

Any chance to get this done with visitor messages?

Thanks,
I'm sure it could be adapted to Visitor messages. I haven't had spammers hit me that way. The one I have seen them try is Signatures a lot though...

There's one way to fix either of these problems. Create a usergroup for people that have say, 10, 20, or 50 posts. Make it so regular users with less than this many posts do not have access to post signatures or Visitor messages. Unless the spammer starts after making 50 legitimate posts (very unlikely) their spam will never be seen.

Or for a quick fix, make your most generic/lowest post count usergroup have this setting applied:
Follow Forum Moderation Rules

In the guest/visitor profile page option of the usergroup CP ^^^


Do you have an email? I'll just send a couple text files with the changes.

Sure, send it to dan -at- tweak3d dot net

[darkie79]

Monkey,

Email Sent, sorry for the delay.

[tweakmonkey]

Np, saw it. Thanks and I'll look at it when I've got some time. :)

[induslady]

Hi,

Is it possible to avoid auto-moderating posts that includes internal URLs (ie. links to URLs within own domain)?

I've included keywords like .com, http, www and it auto-moderates posts that include links to my own site.

Thank you.

Induslady

[waynne]

Still loving this mod. The few spammers that get through are stopped dead in their tracks.

Why is this not automatically included as part of VB? If no-ones spam post appeared there would be a drop in spam attacks and attempts even from human spam posters.

Is there any solution to RSS feeds ending up in the moderation queue if the user is not logged in at the time? This is my only gripe with what is a superb modfication.

It would be good to see this project updated and moved to the VB 3.8 Forum.

[tweakmonkey]

Waynne,
Thanks for the feedback. I don't know what's different about 3.8, but I use this mod with the most up to date Vbulletin at all times and had never had problems with it. Should I just cross-post to the 3.8.4?

For the RSS question, sorry I'm not sure. I have done very little programming with the RSS bot and I'm not sure how you could check this status in the plugin.
-Dan

[waynne]

I presume the RSS bot has a userid which shows as 0 posts all the time. I'll see if I can work out what needs to be done but I'm no coder.

Please do post this in the 3.8 forum this is the single most effective spam prevention mod I have ever used. Any attempts to spam are caught in moderation allowing us to ban or warn the users. Other systems just block the post and the spammers accounts remain active.

[Kooldino]

I don't think this plays by it's own rules. I set it to moderate posts by users with less than 4 posts only. It's moderating a user of mine with thousands of posts and not allowing him to post a bunch of links. what gives?

Edit: Note - this user is an RSS bot. My temporary workaround is making him part of the moderator usergroup. Hopefully this will fix the issue.

[Chunky Monkey]

We just installed this on 3.8.4 and it appears to be working. I couldn't find anything like it in the 3.8 version forum. We were getting overrun with spam despite our human verification requirement, and it seems this will stop it dead in its tracks! Thank you, Tweakmonkey.

[sarangan]

What about an upgraded version for VBulletin 4?

[Toopac]

Perfect,

I use a few choice keywords from the spam threads/posts that I have been getting, and I also have all threads/posts with URL's/Emails filtered too.

= ZERO SPAM, NONE, NULL

Excellent!

[myogesh_mathur]

Thanks a lot man, this is what i was looking for. I would like to make a small donation for it, if you don't mind. Please tell me where I can do so.

Thanks again.

[Welshy2008]

Is this been or has it been ported for 4.0.3 PL1 Please?

[cobaku]

i am looking for vb 4 version too

[Kaitou Ace]

vb 4 version would be great!

[RangerXXX]

I just installed this, but if the spammer replies to a thread it will still send out e-mails to people who subscribed to the thread.

[BirdOPrey5]

I installed this on 3.8.6 but no options appeared in vbulletin options... I refreshed the page, even tried from another browser, nothing... uninstalling. :(

Edit- Nevermind- found it under 'general settings' oops.

[BirdOPrey5]

hmmm, just not working for me... got a spam today that repeatedly mentioned 'iphone' and '.com' both of which are words to 'scan for' and it was posted to my forum anyway.

[GlowHost.com]

i am looking for vb 4 version too

vb 4 version would be great!

Try this similar mod (with additional functionality) with support for vB4
Spam-O-Matic (https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthread.php?t=248042)

[induslady]

Hi,
I have got this installed in my forums. Additionally now I want this Mod to do the below:

1. Analyze all the posts getting auto-moderated.
2. If it finds the auto-moderated post having an external link (.com, .net URL link), then it check if it is a first post by that user.
3. Then it should delete the post and the user registration too.

Appreciate your earliest response.
Thanks.

[sonic83]

Hi, it works for vbulletin 4.2.1?

thanks

[insidegames]

Do this works with vbulletin 4.2.2?

[ozzy47]

Try this similar mod (with additional functionality) with support for vB4
https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthread.php?t=248042

[insidegames]

is it possible to exclude a user-group from this mod?