The "free movie downloads" spammer is getting ridiculous.
LQ Suggestions & FeedbackDo you have a suggestion for this site or an idea that will make the site better? This forum is for you.
PLEASE READ THIS FORUM - Information and status updates will also be posted here.
Notices
Welcome to LinuxQuestions.org, a friendly and active Linux Community.
You are currently viewing LQ as a guest. By joining our community you will have the ability to post topics, receive our newsletter, use the advanced search, subscribe to threads and access many other special features. Registration is quick, simple and absolutely free. Join our community today!
Note that registered members see fewer ads, and ContentLink is completely disabled once you log in.
If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us. If you need to reset your password, click here.
Having a problem logging in? Please visit this page to clear all LQ-related cookies.
Get a virtual cloud desktop with the Linux distro that you want in less than five minutes with Shells! With over 10 pre-installed distros to choose from, the worry-free installation life is here! Whether you are a digital nomad or just looking for flexibility, Shells can put your Linux machine on the device that you want to use.
Exclusive for LQ members, get up to 45% off per month. Click here for more info.
The "free movie downloads" spammer is getting ridiculous.
You know who I'm talking about. At least twice a week, we're seeing the same spammer posting "free movie downloads" spam. Now, I'd usually not start a thread to complain about this, but we've been seeing this guy for months now and the problem hasn't abated. It's starting to get ridiculous.
Distribution: Debian, Red Hat, Slackware, Fedora, Ubuntu
Posts: 13,597
Rep:
It's almost certainly not "a guy", but a highly sophisticated very persistent effort. We block *well* over 99% of these, and always strive to improve. That said, we're very cognizant of the impact having algorithms that are too strict can have on the ability for new legitimate members to post (and you may remember a recent instance where a block meant to stop this very spam wave did cause an issue for some legitimate members). It's a difficult line to walk and one that is more complicated than most members likely realize. As always thanks for the feedback. This is an area we focus a lot of energy on and one we know impacts members greatly.
I'm just curious about something; Which possibilities do moderators have to deal with this, especially the removing of spam threads?
I've noticed over the years that mods have their own sub-forums and that they can (globally) ban spammers, but it seems they cannot remove (all?) the spam threads. Is this due to lack of permissions or are there only a few mods that can do this specific action?
If at all possible, could mods be enabled to remove spam threads (globally)?
Most spam threads are reported rather fast, which reduces some of the face time, removing them faster would reduce it even more.
Distribution: Debian, Red Hat, Slackware, Fedora, Ubuntu
Posts: 13,597
Rep:
While we don't release specific information about mod capabilities, the ability for them to deal with spam on a more global level is something that's on the roadmap.
Is it just me, or have we been seeing a lot more of this spammer over the last few days?
I'm also still seeing mods locking the spammer's threads for other mods to remove later, instead of just removing the threads themselves, like they should be empowered to.
Distribution: Debian, Red Hat, Slackware, Fedora, Ubuntu
Posts: 13,597
Rep:
While you may be anecdotally seeing a few more, believe it or not as a percentage we're catching significantly more than previously due to a recent improvement on our end.
Distribution: Debian, Red Hat, Slackware, Fedora, Ubuntu
Posts: 13,597
Rep:
You'd probably be shocked if you knew how many anti-spam measures we currently have in place, but I'm always willing to look at additional measures of defense. Feel free to email me any info you think might help and I'll take a look. Thanks.
Distribution: Debian, Red Hat, Slackware, Fedora, Ubuntu
Posts: 13,597
Rep:
Based on this thread I've taken a closer look at recent spam treads here at LQ and based on that I've made a few adjustments that should also reduce all spam in general. If you notice a difference either way, feel free to post in this thread.
I'm almost worried that some of the regular posters here will be blocked due to their horrible spelling, grammar, capitalization, use of bang's and so on!!!!1!
LinuxQuestions.org is looking for people interested in writing
Editorials, Articles, Reviews, and more. If you'd like to contribute
content, let us know.