Administrative and Maintenance Tools - vbStopForumSpam - known spammer lookup for new registrations

vbStopForumSpam

This provides access to a RBL type system for forum admins, listing known spam IP / email / usernames. The RBL database is provided by www.stopforumspam.com. You do NOT need an API key from the website in order to access the database. only to submit data if you should wish to do so.

At the point of user registration, the mod checks if the IP number / provided username / email addresses appear on a block list and can block the registration.

Whilst this isnt the most perfect way to stop all forum spam, its another step that spammers have to overcome.

VB4 here https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthrea...hreadid=230921
Its the same code, it works in 3.54 to 4.0


What it does

It checks with a remote database of known forum spammers. Their IP number, email address and forum username are tested and based on your configuration, you can reject / log / accept user registrations based on what you get back.

This version doesnt have
- whitelisting or the ability to submit users to the database but it will within the next week.
- automatic user deletion / post / PM purging. There are good tools out there already, this does something else.

Instructions are included in the installation.txt file - PLEASE read it first and dont forget to actually upload the files in the upload folder, otherwise it WILL kill your registration progress and you wont see the log file options in admincp. You do not need to download the product-vbstopforumspam-3.54.xml file unless you are using a vBulletin version older than 3.6.0

Changes to vB
- 3 new database tables
- 2 database table alternations
- No new templates.
- 2 Hook (register_addmember_process & register_addmember_complete)

Ive tested it but had feedback that it works with versions as old as 3.6.2... Support should go back to older versions, as long as they have hook support for register_addmember_process / register_addmember_complete

Known to work - tested by me
- vBulletin 3.6.8 on Apache 2.2 / PHP 5.1.2 on Linux using cUrl
- vBulletin 3.7 Gold on Apache 2.0 / PHP 4.4.3 on Windows without cUrl (template changes wont work on 3.7 - thats in the next version with auto template changes)

For code to submit spammers to the database, check this post for code changes
https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showpost....&postcount=288

Reported in the thread to work
- 3.6.1, 3.6.2, 3.6.9, 3.6.10, 3.7.0, 3.7.1, 3.7.2, 3.7.3, 3.74, 3.80, 3.81, 3.82, 3.83, 3.8.4, 4.0beta3

If you have 3.54, then you can use the product-vbstopforumspam-3.54.xml file attached instead of the one in the ZIP file, which will allow older vBulletin versions to access this mods' features. I personally havent tested this version, its a user contribution, thanks to Darrell Mobley, that changes the way the XML works when imported into older versions.

Installers should remember to refresh their ACP navigation window when they first install it so they can see the new log file menu item.

REQUIRES MySQL 4.1.1+

Future versions
- Automatic integration into vBulletin to add users to the stopForumSpam.com database from a form
- Whitelisting of username / IP / email addresses
- AJAX integration to allow for lookups from within the users profile
- Decreased remote query count from three per user to one per user.

Versions / Changes

0.1 Initial Release

0.2 pedigrees special brew birthday release.
- Small security update. If you have 0.1 installed, download 0.2 and replace your existing functions_vbsfs.php with the one in the archive. It just tests to see if its running inside the VB framework before anything else. This is what happens when you code at 2am after drinking wine

0.3
- stopped it processing valid registrations twice
- moved all non-function code into the plugin. Not a big one as 0.2 basically did that
- fixed a typo in the log pruner that stopped it working (404)
- removed unused fields from the database for people with mysql that doesnt support varchar > 255 (ie mySQL4). If you have 0.2 installed and dont need to prune your logs just yet, you dont really need to install this version but can instead wait for 1.0 unless of a massive security update.

0.4
- logs registrations that arent/wouldnt be blocked
- fixed XML errors when username has a space it in
- tightened up the cache so that it doesnt test a username against an email name to give a bypass result (for when a username is an email address that isnt banned where the email address is)
- fixed some basic logic errors in the PHP

0.6
- Should work on PHP 4.4 now - rewrote the XML with PHP4 in mind (tested on Apache2.0/PHP 4.4.3)
- Fixed a caching system where data wasnt being updated correctly which could cause a remote query when one wasnt needed
- Possible false negative situation when a spammer was blocked due to SFS.com being down who then visited again when it was up but within the cache expiry time
- Remote query failure when the result page isnt XML should work a bit better now. It does a very basic test for valid XML results.
- Fixed log purging (again) and it should actually work properly now.
- No longer requires PHP5
- The log viewer now links to a user profile when registration is allowed.

v0.61 - Removed a template change that was invalid vBulletin code. The package you download will still say its 0.60 however

NB : When upgrading from any version to 0.6, you must remove and then add the plugin due to changes in one of the database tables

You need to have an API key from www.stopforumspam.com in order to submit data, its free and easy to get... You DONT need an API key in order to use this mod however, only to submit spammer data.

Issues are
- The usergroup permissions / view details etc DONT work. I jumped the gun and put the permissions controls in there before I put the code in. Please delete the includes/xml/bitfield_vbstopforumspam.xml file and rebuild your postbit

Installation
- Follow the instructions in the zip file, that includes upload the correct folders
- ONLY download the 3.54 xml file if youre using a vbulletin version prior to 3.6.0. use this file to install the mod instead of the xml file in the zip file.

Please click Installed

[Chris of Arabia]

I've just uploaded the files to our server, but on Step 2 (Import XML into products), I get a message saying "Invalid File Specified".

Is there any reason why I would be expected to see this. We're currently running 3.8.2

[Talking Poker]

Originally Posted by Chris of Arabia

I've just uploaded the files to our server, but on Step 2 (Import XML into products), I get a message saying "Invalid File Specified".

Is there any reason why I would be expected to see this. We're currently running 3.8.2

Same problem here (3.8.1), and need this mod badly after a huge rise in spammer registrations recently.

[Talking Poker]

Originally Posted by Talking Poker

Same problem here (3.8.1), and need this mod badly after a huge rise in spammer registrations recently.

Figured it out... was following the directions too closely, d assumed the XML file referred to was the one I had just uploaded. In fact, it's the one I didn't even notice: product-vbstopforumspam.xml (in the zip, outside of the upload directory).

[Chris of Arabia]

Originally Posted by Talking Poker

Figured it out... was following the directions too closely, d assumed the XML file referred to was the one I had just uploaded. In fact, it's the one I didn't even notice: product-vbstopforumspam.xml (in the zip, outside of the upload directory).

Hmmm.... I'll go try that then. Possibly a little more clarity needed in the instructions then.

Thanks for the help

[TacticalNuke]

I don't know if it has been asked yet, but is there a mod for auto-submitting spammers to the database when we use the delete as spam function?

[Alfa1]

Lee brought something important to my attention regarding SFS:
http://www.vbulletin.com/forum/showt...=1#post2104854
SFS is very successful at blocking spam bots from registrations. But that causes another issue. These spammer registration scripts can try to register again in millions of a second. Hitting the server many times and causing high server loads. This is also why SFS logs show so many blocked spammer accounts.

So while SFS resolves the spam problem it relocates the problem to server issues.

Have you thought about analyzing the http fingerprint of blocked spammers and blocking them from the site? Or even adding a temporary IP block for those IPs.

Originally Posted by TacticalNuke

I don't know if it has been asked yet, but is there a mod for auto-submitting spammers to the database when we use the delete as spam function?

Yes, you can do that with spam-o-matic, which includes SFS.

[ilrglen]

I FINALLY got around to installing this on my forum and it WORKS WONDERFULLY! In the past 24 hours it stopped 761 registrations. I love it. These registrations were such a waste of my time that I can now spend on other things. Thanks.

[ilrglen]

Originally Posted by Alfa1

Lee brought something important to my attention regarding SFS:
http://www.vbulletin.com/forum/showt...=1#post2104854
SFS is very successful at blocking spam bots from registrations. But that causes another issue. These spammer registration scripts can try to register again in millions of a second. Hitting the server many times and causing high server loads. This is also why SFS logs show so many blocked spammer accounts. So while SFS resolves the spam problem it relocates the problem to server issues.

In going through my logs from the past 24 hours I can see that this is exactly what is happening. Rejected spam bots tried again and again to register. But for now I'd much rather have that problem.

[Simon Lloyd]

There is a problem with this mod, take a look at your logs and the registrations it allows through, it's allowing email addresses that are not email addresses, i've had loads of spammers get through and they are supplying email addresses like "xYrkS", "nMWDZj"..........etc and many many more like it, i had turned of email confirmation as it can be a bit hit and miss but i've had to turn it on now

[Don Z.]

Originally Posted by StopForumSpam

This version doesnt have
- whitelisting or the ability to submit users to the database but it will within the next week.

Was this feature ever added? Is there any way to add to the database directly from the vBulletin Admin CP?

By the way, this mod works great with my vBulletin 3.8.6 PL1 installation. It rejected over 300 spammer registrations in the first 24 hours!