[Mr.Panos]

One of the biggest problems of a Forum Administrator is the spam. How do you deal with it? What are your methods?
I don't have a specific method. I usually ban them and them move their spam-posts or spam-topics to the trash. Pretty easy, right?

[GonFreecs]

Yes me too!
Usually do only that

[Mr.Panos]

It very easy and you don't lose content!

[CyberFreak]

I usually use a plugin/mod that checks against the stopforumspam.com database and have some sort of Q&A or another type of visual confirmation (which doesn't ship by default with the software) and usually it works well. Any that gets through I ban, hide the posts and submit to stopforumspam.com to stop them spamming other forums.

[Brad W]

I usually use a plugin/mod that checks against the stopforumspam.com database and have some sort of Q&A or another type of visual confirmation (which doesn't ship by default with the software) and usually it works well. Any that gets through I ban, hide the posts and submit to stopforumspam.com to stop them spamming other forums.

Same as this its the best way of stopping most of the spam unless there new to it.

[MoneyBox]

I use mods that make it hard for the spammers to get through in the first place. If they still do and outright spam (not just the odd mistake from an actual user) I will ban them, move the post from public viewing and block their IP.

[TimeRider]

There are modules to stop spam in the forum. However, few spam bots get in the forum. They can be manually removed looking at their posts / topics.

[juststeven]

MyBB has a good plugin for spammers called 'Goodbye Spammer' which can bin or delete their posts. Ban or delete their accounts. Remove any links from their signature or profile comments. And get rid of their avatar. This efficiently cleans up automated spammers. However I give manual spammers who only have one spam thread a warning before saying goodbye. As a side not, some people would say I'm spamming right now because I'm methodically making my way through all the posts in this section in a short amount of time but my quality is way above average. So careful how you define spam.

[Bananaman]

MyBB has a good plugin for spammers called 'Goodbye Spammer' which can bin or delete their posts. Ban or delete their accounts. Remove any links from their signature or profile comments. And get rid of their avatar. This efficiently cleans up automated spammers. However I give manual spammers who only have one spam thread a warning before saying goodbye. As a side not, some people would say I'm spamming right now because I'm methodically making my way through all the posts in this section in a short amount of time but my quality is way above average. So careful how you define spam.

That sounds an Interesting mod. Please could you share a link?.

[shamzblueworld]

I am using strong security questions at the register to ban them, and it is working wonderfully at the moment, I have gone from 50+ spam registerations per day to literally zero. So I think this is the best method to tackle spam.

[JordanDD]

I install a anti spam software

[Fergal]

I install a anti spam software

Which one and how is it working out for you?

[ksridharprasad]

Hi Fergal,

What is spam and scam, differentiate both of them sir. I do not know about them.

[Fergal]

What is spam and scam

Spam generally refers to junk / low quality posts, which are normally made on a forum in order to promote a link, product or service.

A scam refers to some kind of fraud, designed to cheat someone out of money. E.g. selling something and receiving payment for it, keeping the money, but not delivering what was sold.

[Jybraek]

What exactly is considered Spamming?

[Fergal]

What exactly is considering Spamming?

Spam generally refers to junk / low quality posts, which are normally made on a forum in order to promote a link, product or service.

Spam posts often look like the following "Thanks for sharing", "I agree", "Visit my drug website at ....", etc.

Does that answer your question?

[Jybraek]

Yes it does, Fergal. Thanks for that information. But how about those threads where mostly all a person can do is just say thank you for something..or the Daily Forumcoin please...(Those are just 3 words that are most often used) Wouldn't those be considered spam then?

[Rick Ace]

Yes it does, Fergal. Thanks for that information. But how about those threads where mostly all a person can do is just say thank you for something..or the Daily Forumcoin please...(Those are just 3 words that are most often used) Wouldn't those be considered spam then?

I can't speak for ForumCoin. But as for most forums, you just need common sense. If you need to continuously reply to a thread (such as the daily forum coin topic), then that could be an exception. But whenever possible, try to describe your feelings in a post. A big issue is that most people don't convey what's on their mind, and that leaves the posts "half-answered".

[Fergal]

or the Daily Forumcoin please...(Those are just 3 words that are most often used) Wouldn't those be considered spam then?

I would say that they are not spam, because that is what the topic is asking for. There are times when a short post is appropriate, and is all that is needed to make a point or post a comment. It's not always clear cut and there are grey areas. Even experienced admins who deal with lots of posts will sometimes make a mistake and classify a post as spam when it isn't or leave a post on the forum that really is spam and should be removed.

[Rick Ace]

Even experienced admins who deal with lots of posts will sometimes make a mistake and classify a post as spam when it isn't or leave a post on the forum that really is spam and should be removed.

This is a good point. Some times there is a variation in administration standards during different times. For example, when activity was high, I used to strictly enforce the rules.But when activity was low, I avoided confrontations with members and allowed the rules to bend a bit.There are also other reasons for changes. When a staff member left the team, I made some changes that I couldn't have made without annoying the former staff member in the past. With that said, if you're a good member, who posts in full sentences, then there shouldn't be an issue on the forum.