Miscellaneous Hacks - NoSpam! for vBulletin 3.7

NoSpam! is back and better than ever! The automatic template edits should be smoother than they were in the previous version, in addition to the 3.7 support. Please note that this version will ONLY work for vBulletin 3.7!

NoSpam! is a simple hack that allows the administrator to specify a number of easy questions, a random one of which must be answered correctly in order for a guest to be able to register, post, search or use the contact form. Because you create the questions and they are unique for each forum, it is impossible for a bot programmer to preprogram a bot to be able to answer them without adjusting the bot specifically to one, and thus you will be rid of all spam posted by CAPTCHA-evading advertisement programs.

This functionality was added by default in vBulletin 3.7's Q&A human verification system, so why use NoSpam! for 3.7 at all? There are a few reasons why one could prefer it:

- I have heard reports that vBulletin's default Q&A human verification is faulty and lets bots through. Truth to be told, I would not have publically released a 3.7 version if not for this. I don't quite see how this could happen and have not experienced it myself seeing as I don't use vBulletin's human verification, but if those reports are to be trusted, NoSpam! will do a better job of keeping the bots out.
- It is much easier to add questions and answers in NoSpam! en massé than in vBulletin's default system. If you want a great number of questions, vBulletin's built-in system takes terribly long to add them all in with quite a lot of page loads in between, while a fast typer can add several dozen questions to NoSpam! in a matter of minutes.
- If you have previously used NoSpam!, a simple copy-paste will get all your previous questions into NoSpam! for 3.7, while to get them into the built-in vBulletin system requires a converter.

If the reports of vBulletin's default human verification system failing are incorrect, I will freely admit that most people will do fine with the built-in system. But if you prefer this hack, by all means use it.

NoSpam! can be used with or without default vBulletin human verification. In this version, the automatic addition of the question into the templates should be flawless and not induce the often-reported problem where the question didn't appear in the previous version of the hack.

VERSION HISTORY:

4.0: Redid the automatic addition of questions to be smoother and more or less foolproof. Released for vBulletin 3.7.
3.0: Added functionality to allow users to specify which pages should use NoSpam!.
2.0: Extended the NoSpam! functionality to guest posts, guest searches and guest "Contact Us" in addition to registration.
1.1: Made template edit automatic (with thanks to Cole2026), added ability to have more than one answer to each question, and made answers case insensitive. To upgrade, I recommend undoing the template edit so you won't have to worry about it anymore (replace $nospamfield in the template register with $imagereg, or if you added $nospamfield above $imagereg, just remove $nospamfield altogether), and then reimport the product through the Admin CP (making sure that Allow Overwrite is set to On).
1.0: Initial release.

INSTALLATION:

1. Import product-nospam.xml through the Admin CP product manager.
2. Go to your vBulletin options in the Admin CP and select NoSpam! Settings. Once there, turn the system on and input your questions and answers according to the instructions there.

The system should now be functional and running.

UNINSTALLATION:

Just uninstall the product through the Admin CP.

SUPPORT:

Full support will be given in this thread. All suggestions are welcome.

Thank you and please click "Mark as Installed" if you like it.

[washingtonboise]

I liked this better than what Jelsoft provided, however I'm on 4.x version of vbulletin now, which is not supported.

Replacing solution with VSA Advanced Registration (which has a similar option at least at the registration page.)

Update: it's working horribly, and I have spam all over the place because my forum allows guest posting. It looks like I'll have to turn guest posting off until NoSpam! is updated for v 4.x

[carsafety]

So far it seems to be working on 3.8.7. I only have it enabled for registration and guest posting. I wish I could find a mod that simply restricted the unregistered usergroup from posting images/links, but none of the ones I've tried actually work. I suspect a compatibility issue with another plugin, perhaps AME. This isn't exactly what I wanted, but it's an extra step that will hopefully force a human to read the quiz question that also indicates that their spam will go into moderation and never be approved anyway. I hope it cuts down on some of the spam that does go into the moderation queue.

[Panzer Max]

Been using NoSpam! effectively for ages with 3.8.4, but in my Plug in Manager it says NoSpam! v4.0


This thread is for NoSpam! v 3.7 for vB 3.7, where is NoSpam! version 4.0 ?

It works for 3.8.4 just fine.

[kaygo777]

Is there a update to this? the spammers have started getting through!

[BirdOPrey5]

If spammers are getting in you either have human spammers which can't be stopped, or you need to have better questions. What does 2 + 2 =? is a bad question, it can easily be answered by a computer.

[TitanJeff]

Like many others, my spam registrations are out-of-control lately. I use this hack and my questions would have to been looked up by someone not familiar with my forum's subject matter in order to be answered.

I think these are humans.