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

[lokash20]

Re: The code to submit spammers to the database (admincp/user.php hack):

Appears to work fine on 3.4.8-PL2; though I have to be honest and say I don't really like hacks and will be happy when 0.7 arrives so I can remove it. But thanks anyway, this is a great help.

Just a thought about the 'release' version of this hack: Would it be possible to have an option so this only displays for users of selected groups? That would lessen the likelihood of accidentally submitting a valid user to SFS.

---Edited to add----
Just found the 3.8 version of this thread so the fact that this hack works in 3.4.8 will be old news to some. Ho-hum.

[Davidinh]

hello everyone

if i want to redirect the user who is a spammer into another location on my board after the message " Unregistered - Spammer and rejected by policy "
where can i take a look (of code)????
have any ideas or suggestion will be appreciated

Regard,

[Eric Anderson]

I have a very serious problem with this Mod..... all of my Moderators are bored to death as there are no more spammers on our forums. vbStopForumSpam Log Viewer (page 1/156) | There are 2,328 total log entries. and that is like 15-20 days worth I think. I changed the verbage of the message to include a link directly to me and NOT ONE EMAIL STATING A MISTAKE. I also have moderate by country IP address and have all countries that are pertanent to my forums list all others banned and I have 1 person that got caught by that Mod. This is the best thing since sliced bread as we used to get 100-200 a day that would try to rregister from where ever and be from Brazil....as my forums are Snowmobile based that was wrong but they figured out about the ip from what country and started using proxies this stopped them dead in their tracks... Thanks again

[websissy]

Yeah, you're right Eric, I'm having a nearly identical problem. Since I installed this mod on one of my sites on January 25, that site has successfully blocked 4,242 spambot registration attempts and I've not had one complaint of an incorrect blocking. That's approximately 104.46341463414634146341463414634 blocked bots per day. Of course, I can't be certain yet, It could just be beginner's luck or some wierd statistical fluke. Like you, I feel as though I should complain. This mod works too well and as a result, my staff has too much time on their hands these days. Because of that, I have to go everyday and create a few spam posts just to keep my staff busy.

[pedigree]

you scared the crap out off me

[Silly_Newbie]

Hi. Please can I ask a question? I have VB version 4.0.2

I've followed the instructions enclosed in the Zip file, and got to the part in AdminCP where we upload the XML file (product-vbstopforumspam.xml). So I did that bit fine I thought as it's whirring away with little yellow dots on the screen at the top.

Yet,it never stops, it says: ''Importing Product Please Wait''.
(This is in the section, Plugins and Product System in AdminCP)

I waited for 1hr for it to complete, am I doing something wrong please? My internet works fine.
There's a little graphic of an expanding thing and it grows and grows like jack and the bean stalk but never ends.

Cancelled it and went back to try it again now it says: ''Product 'vbStopForumSpam' is already installed and you did not specify that this product may be overwritten/upgraded.''.

How can it be installed when it never finishes installing?!

I'm sorry if I confused anyone, but I was worried I messed it up as it never stopped installing according to the graphic.

[websissy]

I'm assuming this was your very first install of the product. Is that correct, silly? Or had you possibly installed the plugin in an earlier release of 4.0?

AFAIK, it's not really certified yet to install and run under vb4.0.2. I'd guess that means your installation hung because it couldn't find the required plug-in code points it needed to install successfully. So, I'd guess you probably did no damage. But to be sure you should probably go back and uninstalling the plugin and see what happens. Then roll your code and database back to wherever it was before you started the install.

If you're uncertain about exactly how to do that, wait a day or two for pedigree to show up here and maybe he can give you better advice than I'm able to.

Good luck!

[djbaxter]

Originally Posted by websissy

AFAIK, it's not really certified yet to install and run under vb4.0.2. I'd guess that means your installation hung because it couldn't find the required plug-in code points it needed to install successfully. So, I'd guess you probably did no damage. But to be sure you should probably go back and uninstalling the plugin and see what happens. Then roll your code and database back to wherever it was before you started the install.

The 4.x version is here: https://vborg.vbsupport.ru/showthread.php?t=230921

[websissy]

5,282 bot registrations blocked in 52 days and we're still counting. But that means our success rate is dropping. Our average is down to roughly 101.57692307692307692307692307692 bots blocked per day. So far, not a single false positive has been reported! But it's sure as hell boring around here these days...

[KW802]

After upgrading my vB 3.x sites to vB 3.8.5 it meant, of course, that I lost the manual edits to submit the user to StopForumSpam.com from directly in the ACP.

So... I came up with a very quick & very dirty plugin to add an option in the postbit. That way if a spammer does make it through and posts something, I can view the post, click on their name in the postbit, hit the 'Submit' button from the drop-down list (which then takes my browser window to the StopForumSpam.com site and shows me the result of submitting the info), hit the browser 'Back' button, and then continue BAU on cleaning up the spam.

Only Super Mods & above should be able to see the 'Submit' button but, for your own sanity, test it out on your site.

Attached is the plugin XML and a screen shot of how it'll look. Notice this is a plugin and not a product! That means you import via ACP => Plugins & Products => Download/Upload Plugins and *not* through the Manage Products screen.

Yes, it's quick & dirty but it serves my purposes.