So, About All This Spam

[Spike-X]

It really would.

[saul_on_the_road_to_damascus]

We are using an image verification at the registration level, but I'd be wary of using it at the posting level. While it might be effective at discouraging spammer activity, I imagine it would be an annoying chore for regular users.

I think using it to start a thread would be fine. When responding to a thread might be a bit annoying but when starting a thread would work. Of course if they can make it past the registry portion they could probably make it past the thread starting part too

[Conn Seanery]

I think using it to start a thread would be fine. When responding to a thread might be a bit annoying but when starting a thread would work. Of course if they can make it past the registry portion they could probably make it past the thread starting part too

That's not an option.

[Matt]

Even if it were an option, it wouldn't be viable. Such spambots merely change the parameters to which they work. So if we turned on image verification for new threads but not new posts, they'd simply tweak a setting and they'd stop making new threads - just start replying to existing ones.
Which, honestly, would be harder to spot. And thus spam deletions would be slower.

We're always open to suggestions, and this is an issue that ever forum everywhere has, but for now the best thing the community to do is report spam when you see it.

[Shawn Hopkins]

How about a setting where you can only start, say, three (or four or five) new threads per board in 30 minutes? That would keep them from taking whole pages before the mods can act, and I can't think of any legit reason a regular member would have to make that many threads. Heck, even if they were interesting topics that many threads from one member would be spamming.

[Spike-X]

How about a setting where you can only start, say, three (or four or five) new threads per board in 30 minutes?

Or even in 24 hours? I know there used to be a 'soft' rule about this before the board reboot.

[Matt]

We really want to avoid any changes that would impact on the community's ability to post and discuss.

That and I'm fairly sure such a setting doesn't exist.

[Buried Alien]

The solution might require more humans than technology. Perhaps it would be a good idea to deputize "mini-mods," who won't settle member disputes or take on other, regular moderator duties, but whose ONLY function is to hunt SPAM. Recruit maybe two or three reliable members from each time zone so that the forums are covered 24 hours a day.

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)

[Shawn Hopkins]

Now they're hitting in the middle of the day.

[Conn Seanery]

Shawn, with all due respect, you need to settle down. Jumping at the sight of every spammer that manages to post on the forums isn't evidence that things are getting worse. Spammers hit us every day, all day, you just don't see it. That's the way it's been for a long time, all we can do is make moves to stem the tide, odds are we'll never slay the beast.