Administrative and Maintenance Tools - Multiple Account Detection & Prevention

It happens all of the time. Some members will make multiple accounts to back their own opinion or get an extra vote in a poll. Here's a modification that will detect and prevent multiple accounts, as well as notify the administration about multiple accounts. Inspiration for this modification came from the work of MPDev (creator of the Multiple Account Login Detector) and randominity (creator of the Multiple Account Registration Prevention). This is basically a combination of those two modifications but with new and improved functionality.

This is not an update to the "Multiple Account Login Detector (AE Detector)" nor is it an update to the "Multiple Account Registration Prevention." If you have either one of these (or both of them) installed, you should uninstall them before installing this modification.

With the initial release of Multiple Account Detection & Prevention, I believe that I have fixed previous bugs/complications as well as improved the efficiency and logic of the code. This is my first publicly released modification. I would appreciate any comments and suggestions!

Confirmed! This works perfectly on all vBulletin 3.6, 3.7, and 3.8 versions.

Unfortunately, I cannot give support right now. I may be able to help periodically, but until my schedule yields some more free time, I won't be much support. Please check back in a week or two.

Basic Details
File Edits: None
Template Edits: None
New Files: 6
Hooks/Plugins: 3
Global Phrases: 36
Install Time: 2 Minutes or Less
Install Difficulty: None, Very Easy

Features and Settings
- Login Detection
- Registration Prevention (Multiple Methods)
- Ignore Child Accounts
- Ignored Users
- Ignored Usergroups
- Ignored ISPs
- Prevention Usergroup
- IP Address Based Prevention
- Extended IP Address Prevention
- IP Address Time Inclusion
- Banned Account Check
- Primary Banned Usergroup
- Cookie Expiration Time
- Cookie Refreshing
- Cookie Name
- Cookie Reset
- Multiple Account Reporter
- Reports via PM
- PM Report Recipients
- Reports via New Thread
- Forum for Report Threads
- Verbose Mode
- BB Codes: LIST, URL, CODE

How it Works
With every newly recognized login/registration, an account-counting cookie is set (or added onto) with the member's User ID. Depending on the settings, Multiple Account Detection & Prevention will analyze the cookie during login/registration to see if there are any multiple accounts.

Login Detection offers cookie-checking and reporting. Registration Prevention offers the same thing, plus more advanced features. First of all, when it prevents an account from registering, it actually moves the registrant to the Prevention Usergroup so that the administration can review the case. This also allows for customized privileges for recognized multiple registrants. Registration Prevention also has IP address detection which finds out just as much information about users. Depending on an administrator's preference, this modification can also reban a new registrant if one of their previous accounts has been banned. In fact, if the administration wishes, multiple registrants can simply be denied registration all together.

Whenever there is a detection/prevention, the modification will report the information to the administration through private messages, a new thread, or both (depending on settings). The Multiple Account Reporter can be any valid user.

Known Issues
- vB Optimise users: Reporting via thread seems to get messed up by vB Optimise, so try reporting via PM instead.
- PhotoPost vBGallery users: The registration handling appears to not work properly when PhotoPost vBGallery is enabled.

From what I can tell, these known clashes have been caused by the other modification's coding. The author of vB Optimise will not even work with me to fix it. Until they improve their coding, I'm not sure if I can do anything about these issues. As far as I know, administrators that do not use the above modifications will not have any problems.

Installation / Upgrade
Unzip the package (madp.zip), upload the files to your forum location, and import the product file (allow overwrite if upgrading). Please read the ReadMe.txt file that is packaged with the modification for more information.

Please remember to mark this modification as installed if you use it!
If you like it, nominate it for the Mod of the Month!

Thank you!

[Lethaeus]

Bug with vBoptimise

[akxt660]

Work with 4.03 ?

[socialvisionsbcn]

Originally Posted by Alfa1

I am running this on a big board and its certainly a live saver. We have 1250 report threads so far. (5-10 a day) So a big thanks to the coder!

We frequently do encounter a bug/error though, as it does not correctly identify if any of the multiple accounts are banned accounts.
Most reports state:

Primary Banned Usergroup: 8 (Found)

While none of the accounts are banned (8)

It would really help, if this issue would be solved, because it would allow us to use the built in functions to automatize part of the process. Making the system ban automatic while this issue is unresolved, would result in banning hundreds of innocent members.

...

We also have profited a LOT from this hack. 5-10 threads a day. Our gratitude to Kiros.

We do not experience inocent banning due to any bug (as long as I know).

Among commented requests, I see interest in IP query/search when involved, and indeed variables available pointing userIds, so we can customize links to automate actions in thread content.

I'm decided to focus moderation info towards user notes, so my proposal would be to add clon accounts information in this field, a similar way in wich this hack does on user name changes:

https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthread.php?t=153732

[Markos]

works on vb4.0.7 but doesn't re-ban banned users

[Alan_SP]

It would be nice that there is option to prevent banned users to register to board and enabling normal users to have multiple accounts without moving to new usergroup for moderation.

[Alfa1]

Deceptor (vboptimize) is now looking into resolving this conflict/bug with MADP. I hope that this will be found, as both hacks are awesome.

[Alan_SP]

I think that there needs to be more options what to do with MA depending on user behind them.

For example, right now I can't allow MA for user without ban and disallowing registration and banning all MA for user with ban. Or how can it be done? On some bulletin boards it would be useful to allow MA for decent users, while punishing those misbehaving ones.

I suggest:

Split options for MA registration and login detection.

Also, each of this group of options should have parts for users with ban and those without.

In registration part, for each type of users (banned and without ban) should be these options:

1. Do nothing
2. Move to usergroup
3. Ban (it would be really nice if we could set ban duration in options, whether to match original ban or arbitrary period of time including permanently banning MA)
4. Disallow registration completely

In MA login detection part, also for each type of users (banned and without ban):

1. Do nothing
2. Move to usergroup
3. Ban all other MA

In each of this four settings group should be separate options for reporting actions and detections, to report or not. The type of reporting is determined in special settings group, as it is done now. You may want reports on some actions and detections performed and not on others.

Now we have silent mode. If silent mode is off, is there any reports of actions? I don't use any actions because there is none that suits my needs. But I heard that there is no reports of actions and detections. I'm not sure, but I would like some reports.

If there is a way to improve MA detections, it's more than welcome.

Anyway, I think that having options done this way would make this product more suited for needs of different bulletin boards. As now I can't allow users without ban to have MA and ban those that have been banned already, I need to do all work manually and use it only for reporting (silent mode on). But, I would really like to be able to disallow registration for users already banned and automatically ban their other MA. And ability to decide how long they will be banned would be especially useful. I don't want to permanently ban them, only till they original ban expire.

[W!cKeD]

Thanks Kiros, but when you port it to vBulletin 4?

[Alan_SP]

It works just fine with vB4 (I tested it on 4.0.6). As it doesn't need templates, it works with vB4.

[adriatic21]

I try to upload madp folder (via filezilla), but I have raport as:

Command: STOR /public_html/madp/set.php
Response: 553 Could not create file.
Error: Critical file transfer error

what I did wrong? pls any help?