Administrative and Maintenance Tools - Moderate New Registrations Based On IP Geographical Origin

Original 3.7 mod here.

This mod will put any new registration into moderation so you can either approve or deny based on the physical location of the IP address. If the IP is located in a country that you white list, the registration will go through as normal.

This may be different for everyone else, but on my forums, I have yet to have a Russian IP sign up for anything other than posting SPAM. This plugin has moderated them all!

I hope to have time to eventually expand this to do other things.

You MUST download the zone files from this site:

http://www.ipdeny.com/ipblocks/ (download the "all files" file)

The free license does not allow me to include them with the product, plus it is better to download the latest files anyway.

No real screenshots to show here, sorry.

Changelog:

12/20/2008

• Coded the routine in, instead of using external whois program.
• Now compatible with Windows
• (39 download of 1.0) (3.7.x)

2/11/2009

• 77 downloads at this point (3.7.x)
• Rewrote application to use zone files rather than relying on Arin

To upgrade, READ THE README, and re-install product (select overwrite).

Don't forget to:

CLICK INSTALL!

[djbaxter]

Originally Posted by Jafo232

If someone has an IP with no country associated with it, it will default them to moderation.

They are shown the standard message all users receive who are moderated.

I can't find the phrase for that message - only the phrases for the messages sent when they are accepted/approved or deleted. Can you point me in the right direction?

[Jafo232]

Just do a test registration with moderation on, you will see all the phrases you need.

[djbaxter]

Originally Posted by Jafo232

Just do a test registration with moderation on, you will see all the phrases you need.

D'oh!

I should have thought of this myself. Thank you!

[kapii]

I think this is a great idea, and if it works, could help me prevent the hacking I've had for the past year from foreign IP users. Most are proxy users anyway.

Thanks!
:up:

[dknelson]

My sincere thanks to Jafo232. This is really working well with the new Zone method. GREAT mod.

[Jafo232]

Originally Posted by dknelson

My sincere thanks to Jafo232. This is really working well with the new Zone method. GREAT mod.

My pleasure. It is nice when a product has very few moving parts like this one.. Makes it easy to help everyone.

[aldamon]

Thanks for the tweak. Makes more sense to black list than to white list. Easier to manage.

Combine this hack with Human Verification and Forbid Users from Posting Links or Images if They Have Fewer than xx Posts, and every board should be SPAM free and confirmed registrations should be SPAMmer free. At least, that's what I'm hoping.

Originally Posted by Jafo232

If you want to do that you could treat the valid country codes section as an EXCLUDE list, then just change this line in whois.php:

if (!in_array($country, $valid_countries)) { $userdata->set('usergroupid', 4); }

To this:

if (in_array($country, $valid_countries)) { $userdata->set('usergroupid', 4); }

[Jafo232]

This hack alone has basically eliminated SPAM on my forums. Of course most of mine are English speaking so white listing is easier than black listing.

[Paul M]

Originally Posted by Jafo232

If someone has an IP with no country associated with it, it will default them to moderation.

It would be better, IMO, to default them to approved.

[Jafo232]

Originally Posted by Paul M

It would be better, IMO, to default them to approved.

Well, you can modify the code to do that, but in my case, I deal mostly with American users. Most American ISP's will show up (in fact, I have yet to see one that will not).