Miscellaneous Hacks - NoSpam! - an alternative to CAPTCHA images

This hack is for vBulletin 3.6.x. For 3.5.x, please use the one provided in this thread. If you are using 3.7.x, you must use the one in this thread.

This simple hack is meant as a replacement for the default CAPTCHA system in vBulletin. There are two main reasons one might want to do this: firstly, new technology is constantly being developed to crack CAPTCHA images and make spam accounts anyway, and secondly, the more secure the CAPTCHA, the more difficult it is for genuine users to tell what the numbers in the image are. There is also the issue of visually impaired users, and the fact that not all servers are capable of generating CAPTCHA images.

So what does this hack do instead? It asks a question. Any question you want. That's the best part: YOU make up the questions, which means that every forum is unique, which means that it is impossible for spambots to be simply programmed to bypass it at all forums with the hack installed. You can make one or many questions - if you make many, the hack will pick one at random when a guest attempts to register, search, post or send mail through the Contact Us form. Their input is compared with your specified answer, and voil?, if they get it right they're pretty much guaranteed to be human. If they get it wrong, they're given an error message.

It doesn't have to be a complicated question. Heck, you can just make it "Please type 'blah' into this box." Or you can go with inserting a simple image with HTML and ask what is shown on the image. Or you can ask them to tell you two plus two. It's up to you. In fact, this can also be used as a means of forcing people to read the rules by asking for a certain password found there, or if your forum focuses on a specialized subject, ask a question concerning the subject that all your genuine users will be able to answer, but a random troll or "CAPTCHA-sweatshop-reader" will be scratching their head over.

It's simple to install, too: just one product to import, and that's it.


VERSION HISTORY:

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:

Please download NoSpam!.zip, not product-nospam.xml, for the tested version. product.nospam.xml is NoSpam! 4.0 adapted blindly to 3.6, i.e. by editing the XML file for the 3.7 version without actually testing it on a 3.6 board. Theoretically it should work, but I cannot guarantee it at this time. If you download NoSpam!.zip and unzip it, it will contain another file called product.nospam.xml, which you should use.

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 here in this thread. All suggestions are welcome.

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


If NoSpam! is not working for you or you are looking for something a little different, you might want to check out Advanced Textual Confirmation.

[blinking8s]

I went through the troubleshooting and triple checked that everything is in place, nospam is enabled and everything appears to function fine within the admin

but...it does not display in registration or any of the other pages.

*edit*

i uninstalled the addon, then reinstalled it, and it had DOUBLE NoSPAM in the templates, so I had to goback and remove the troubleshooting stuff I had added...haha

oh well, it appears to be working now, I am very excited...

[antiekeradio]

first month of use allmost over:

0 spambot registrations.

*knocks wood with a BIG smile.

[antialiasis]

Originally Posted by jketron

I am running 3.6.5 vbulletin and your latest version of NoSpam and I had it working fine, for reasons unknown I no longer get the prompt during new user registration to enter the text for Nospam verification. I have the little image thing that the users have to type but the field and question are missing. I have it enabled in the admincp and the new user registration fails with the notice that I didn't answer the NoSpam question...I never got the chance

www.completerc.com

View the troubleshooting.txt file you should have downloaded with the hack and make the template edit listed for registration.

[Damien001]

i have install no spam but it seem that some bots are getting by

also have the proxing checker running could that be interfering?

[putergirl]

After another annoying spam registration today I installed your program and it worked right out of the box! Thank you so much.

[TMM]

Hi,

This looks like a great mod - 2 questions:

• Any chance this will work with 2.2.9....?
• Can it be set up so that it only applies for guest postings?

Thanks,

TMM

[haynesforum]

I've installed NoSpam!, added the question and answer, selected for it to appear on the reg and contact pages and added $nospamfield above $imagereg in their templates but no questions are displayed.

Help!

We have vBulletin 3.6.4 and NoSpam3.0, PHP 5.5.

[Luky]

Upgrade to 3.6.5 Its safer.

[Ncturnal]

Originally Posted by TMM

Hi,

This looks like a great mod - 2 questions:

• Any chance this will work with 2.2.9....?
• Can it be set up so that it only applies for guest postings?

Thanks,

TMM

Version 2.2.9??? :down: Jeebus, uprgrade already. Posting open to Guests? Seriously, I'm speechless. I think you should seriously re-evaluate how you run a forum.

[antialiasis]

Originally Posted by TMM

Hi,

This looks like a great mod - 2 questions:

• Any chance this will work with 2.2.9....?
• Can it be set up so that it only applies for guest postings?

Thanks,

TMM

It can apply only for guest posting just fine, but I'm afraid that to my knowledge the vBulletin software has been pretty much entirely rewritten since 2.2.9 and I have absolutely no experience with pre-3.5 vBulletin. This isn't such a complicated hack and probably wouldn't take too long to specialize to 2.2.9 for you if you desperately needed it, but that would need me to dig into outdated code that just about nobody is using. If you are using CAPTCHA and yet your forum is being filled with spambots, I might look into it as a favor, but don't count on it. It would be a much better idea to upgrade your forum if at all possible.

Originally Posted by haynesforum

I've installed NoSpam!, added the question and answer, selected for it to appear on the reg and contact pages and added $nospamfield above $imagereg in their templates but no questions are displayed.

Help!

We have vBulletin 3.6.4 and NoSpam3.0, PHP 5.5.

Hmm.

If you trust me, I could probably figure it out if you gave me admin access to your forum for a little while, but of course it is perfectly understandable if you aren't too fond of the idea. If you try to register, do you get an error message about having answered the question incorrectly or not?