I am not sure what settings you are referring to?

I have set the mod to have SFS check IP and check e-mail addresses, but SOM has yet to deny a single registration.

I have had over 40 new registrations since i re-installed the mod today (12 hours ago).
38 Spammers Permanently Banned
26 Spammy Posts Automatically Moderated


I just checked one of the moderated posts on my forum and it was posted by:
User Details:
Username: nawfuscuncasy
User ID Number: 451
User E-mail: sarahsize537@hotmail.com
User Registration IP Address: 168.63.134.90
User IP Address for Selected Post: 168.63.134.90

I did a search on StopForumSpam and it shows:
Found 236 entries for "168.63.134.90"

The first 50 entries on the search show the same e-mail and IP address as the person registered on my forum. I would assume that this user should have been denied registration by SOM, but it wasn't...

Any Suggestions?

Is this the only Mod you have running on your server - have you disabled all others?

GerstnerUSA,
Some of my settings may differ from others, it depends mostly on the amount of security that you need. This is my one and only mod for stopping bad registration. The only other thing that I use is Solve Media but that is to help generate a little revenue! So spammers give it your best shot, I make money every time you try.

This may be long, but maybe it will help others as well. I will not note everything because it is user preference.

First Akismet is for Blogs:

Enabled
Post Count: 5
Enter your key
Easy Cleanup: Yes

Stop Forum Spam IP Check: Enabled
User Name Check: Disabled (This setting may vary from user to user)
Email Check: Enabled
Desired Action: Log and Block Registration

Query Connection Errors: This one may vary from user to user as well. If the SFS database is down or unable to retrieve records you have two options. I Allow registration even if it means I may have to both remove them, block the IP and or E-mail. Always do a search before you block an IP!!

Remote Expiry: Another one that users may have set different. I have mine set to 30 but if you are having consistent a consistent problem you may want to set it higher. Just remember that if you do innocent people could have a problem being issued a dynamic address that a spammer used before them.

SFS Key:

Easy Clean Up: Yes

I used the Newbies Manager group once but I currently have it disabled. It is a good feature to turn on if you are having persistent problems. You may read about it here: http://forums.glowhost.com/programmi...ager-2382.html

I also currently have Auto Moderation Disabled.

The next few I don't even use at the time being. They primarily have to do with the Newbies group. However, there are a few more options that I do have enabled, but the list is pretty long.

See if your current settings are set up similar to mine. Maybe this will fix your issue.

@Syxguns @apsrfbv4

Thank you for your responses.

I don't have any other Mods installed on the forum. My website does have OpenCart running and a RapidSSL Certificate.

I have checked through my settings>options>glowhost-spam-o-matic and they all were already using the same answers you recommended:

Stop Forum Spam IP Check: Enabled
User Name Check: Disabled
Email Check: Enabled
Desired Action: Log and Block Registration
Query Connection Errors: Allow Registration
Remote Expiry: 30
SFS Key: (I have not applied for one yet, will it check IP's/e-mail's without a key?)
Easy Clean Up: Yes

The only places that i differ from your description are:
I do not have an Akismet Key
I have Auto-Moderation "Enabled"

I have checked my IP address and my e-mail address in the SFS search area, and neither come up with any results. I would assume that they would not be blocking e-mail and IP Checking from my forum.

Could there be a setting that i accidentally changed somewhere in the forum that would not allow it to communicate or receive data from external websites? (ie. not allowing it to check with StopForumSpam..)

Do i need to add the StopForumSpam website somewhere within the settings as a trusted source?

Thank you for your time...

On a test 4.2 server I tried registering the user with email sarahsize537@hotmail.com
and SOM stopped it with a "registration denied" message
It doesn't have a key installed - so it does work/block without one (normally)

One thing to check is the first option for SOM
the GroupProtect IDs is this set for 5,6,7?
Edit: then again if it is still moderating posts but not preventing signups it's probably not this setting - nm


Could that user have registered on your forum before it was added to the SFS database?


You can try doing a test register of a bad email address yourself
-Since you don't want an email sent out for the test you can disable email temporarily on your server by adding this line to includes/config.php

define('DISABLE_MAIL', 1);

- Then pick an email address from the current SFS database and try registering with it to see if it is blocked
- and remember to remove line to re-enable email after done testing :)



Also if you have root on your server?
You could capture a tcpdump during the signup and should see some traffic to www.stopforumspam.com
with a "GET /api?email=xxx@xxx" and a "GET /api?ip=xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx" in it


Or this may be easier to try from shell window on your server (without needing root):
and the reply back from SFS in the response.txt file should contain something like:

in the CP--> Maintenance--> View PHP Info:
allow_url_fopen: On On
cURL support: enabled

@apsrfvb4

I checked in the CP--> Maintenance--> View PHP Info:
allow_url_fopen: is showing On On
cURL support: is showing enabled

From your previous post, i checked with my domain host support (explained what i wanted to try) and they said that they don't have a shell window, or root access that i can use to try and test your other suggestions.

I tried to register with an e-mail address (em***ttew@gmail.com) that is on the front page of SFS (Top e-mails submitted) and i was able to register on my forum.

I checked the SOM Log Viewer and it shows: "em***ttew@gmail.com - Passed StopForumSpam checks. Sent to vBulletin Registration System."

I have my forum set-up as a subdomain (forum.mydomain.com) , and I installed all of the files into a subdirectory (/forum) on my website, not the root directory. Would that make any difference with anything?

Thank you for all of your suggestions. I hate to ask if you have any other ideas...

other than try setting up a whole new test installation in something like forum2.mydomain.com
and see if can get it working.

Without shell access it's tuff - might even want to find another provider
especially if they don't have shell access themselves.

@apsrfvb4

Thank you for all of your help. I will try a fresh install on another subdomain with a new database. Once i set it up, i will update this thread with my findings.

got your pm all fixed now for you