Multiple account login detector (AE Detector)

If you are like me and migrated from .threads, a common modification was an "AE detector", a simple mod that saved a cookie of a history of ids logged into on your site. If someone logged into more than one account, you got a PM letting you know that your site was being accessed from multiple accounts.

Over the years this was very helpful in identifying users who were posting under multiple accounts (alter-egos!) and users who would return after being banned.

You might be wondering why I don't use the vbcookie call - well, thats because on logout all vB cookies are cleared, so we need to store a cookie that is not effected by the login/logout process.

New Installation
1. Add New Product with attached XML
2. Go to vBulletin Options -> AE Multiple Login Detection Settings and set your specific settings.

Time to install: Easy - 2 minutes.

Upgrade
If you installed this as a Plug-in manually, you can delete that plugin and install this Product, just make sure to go into the Options and set them accordingly.

I hope you find this useful and will click INSTALL if you use it; should it prove useful to enough people I can look at making this installation more automated without the need for edits and an Admin Options page.

To upgrade you will want to reimport this XML file and edit your options accordingly.

1.0.3
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. Added a check to ensure that users weren't deleted when reporting violations
. added htmlspecialchars_uni call to username

Note: I am unable to get the call to construct_phrase with $vbphrase['multiplelogin_alert'] to work reliably, as such the $message variable is still set manually inside the plug-in and not via the phrase. If anyone has an idea of why this might not always work, I'm all ears.

1.0.2
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. Updated to include exclusion groups, users
. Changed so PM is sent by ae sender id

1.0.1
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. Released as a Product (thank you PHPGeek2k3 for your help)
. Added option to post to a forum versus send a PM (or both)
. All settings moved into Admin Option

1.0.0
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Initial release.

[Raydar]

Hi

I'm not 100% sure on how to install this.

When I click on the xml file, it opens up a webpage with code. Do I copy that code to a text doc somewhere and then import it?

All the other addons I have used had text files, but this is different.

Any help is appreciated.

Reg

[Neo_obs]

Originally Posted by Reg Car

Hi

I'm not 100% sure on how to install this.

When I click on the xml file, it opens up a webpage with code. Do I copy that code to a text doc somewhere and then import it?

All the other addons I have used had text files, but this is different.

Any help is appreciated.

Reg

1. go to the plugin system in your admincp
2. then manage products and at the bottom [Add/Import Product]
3. click browse and find the xml you downloaded
4. click import
5. Go to vBulletin Options -> AE Multiple Login Detection Settings and set your specific settings.

should be it

[Eq4bits]

Originally Posted by Reg Car

When I click on the xml file, it opens up a webpage with code. Do I copy that code to a text doc somewhere and then import it?

When you click on the product xml in the 'download' box in the first post of thread choose to 'save as' not 'open'. Save it where you can find it on your computer so that once in your forum admincp>plugin system>manage products>add/import product you'll know where to browse to to import it.

[jellybaby]

This is working intermittently for me, anyone else having this problem? Also, is there any known conflict with any other mods?

Thanks

[MPDev]

None that I know of - not sure what you mean 'intermetently'; either the cookies exist or they don't, it should work fine as long as there are cookies to process.

[pirlinho]

Is there such a plugin for vB 3.0.x? I couldn't find anything similar in the 3.0.x section and I'm in desperate need for such a plugin.

I guess I'll have to renew my licence and upgrade.

[cOuNtErFiET]

there is no plugin system on 3.0.x to my knowledge, so no there is no plugin, maybe a hack for it but def. not a plugin.

anywayz so this is legit, when AE Multiple Login Detector is tripped that is definately an alter-ego user on 1 computer right? I need to know for sure cause i do not allow multiple accounts on my board and i have a message saying it was tripped and it was on e of my admins ...lol

[bashy]

Hi this is cookie based so its based on the usere computer, if its picked up an admin then be carefull, he may have had to login using another members account if the said member had issues of somes ort.....

But yes it does work well

[Snake]

Thanks for this. But how do I edit the PM title "[username] tripped AE detector" and the content of the message?

[Firestar.chkn]

Hi MpDev,

I've been using your detector for quite some time and it's an absolute success. Recently, though, we've been targeted by "MMORPG buy gold" spammers and we have had a case last night, where we had to ban the 3rd username from the same guy after he posted 10 different spam posts on the forums.

Now, to curb this, one of my s-mods suggested that we perhaps ask you to include a feature to automatically put a user in a specific group when one of the other detected usernames is a banned user. I would, for example, want to put the user in a group that is moderated and where the posts has to be approved by the Admin. Then, if the poster proves valid and not a spammer/troublemaker, then the admin can move him to the Registered users group manually, otherwise he can be banned as well.

This is just to try and stop the posts that they make before they are clamped down on.

Please would you consider this feature in the next version?

Thanks again for an excellent hack.
Firestar