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  • Spam Attack On CrazyEngineers - What You Can Do?

    Kaustubh Katdare

    Administrator

    Updated: Oct 26, 2024
    Views: 1.0K
    CEans,

    It's evident that your our beloved CrazyEngineers is under spam attack. Despite our human verification techniques, spammers sign up on the site and post objectionable content. In the last few days, the problem has shot up multi-folds and despite our best efforts; spam is contributed on the forum. But these spammers can't stand against our joint efforts. You can do your bit in helping us fight the spam.

    What to do when you spot spam message or account?

    Simply click on the 'Report' button below the objectionable post and in short tell us why you think it's a spam. Or you can contact the available online moderator (list is displayed in 'Staff' tab in the sidebar).

    Important: Do not reply or comment on the spam message! It makes the whole spam removal process bit more time consuming for us.

    Latest mechanism to combat spam

    We've a new spam fighter that totally fun to use -

    spam-fighter
    On our registration form, we now let people play this quick game to prove that they are humans and not computer programs. We will test this mechanism for a few days on our registration page.

    If you have comments / questions ask them in this thread.
    0
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Replies

  • Abhishek Rawal

    Member • Aug 31, 2012

    A suggestion :
    Once the account is created, automated verification mail is sent to corresponding account (gmail,yahoo or whatever you have mentioned while creating CE account).

    Once the registration is completed, you have to check the e-mail & verify the account.
    Unless you don't verify the CE account via e-mail, you won't be able to post anything.

    What say ?
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  • Kaustubh Katdare

    Administrator • Aug 31, 2012

    That's how it is currently, isn't it?
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  • Abhishek Rawal

    Member • Aug 31, 2012

    Just checked it .. back then it wasn't.
    My mistake, apologies 👀
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  • Jeffrey Arulraj

    Member • Sep 3, 2012

    mostly spammed accounts are left fallow after a while i think it is better to remove some accounts which are inactive in the last 6 months thus we can remove unwanted load a little
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  • Kaustubh Katdare

    Administrator • Sep 4, 2012

    I hope people have read this. I mentioned 'DO NOT QUOTE' the spam message!. Yet I see people first quoting the spam message and then reporting it.
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  • Harshad Italiya

    Member • Sep 4, 2012

    New Captcha is really intelligent. Is there any improvement using this Captcha?
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  • Kaustubh Katdare

    Administrator • Sep 4, 2012

    godfather
    New Captcha is really intelligent. Is there any improvement using this Captcha?
    Yes, the spam registrations have almost been nil; except for the human spammers which be ban regularly.
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  • Aashish Joshi

    Member • Sep 5, 2012

    You can also (maybe in the future) think of implementing IP address based blocking.

    For example, if a user signs up with the same IP address that a spammer has used in 24 hrs block the new account.
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  • Kaustubh Katdare

    Administrator • Sep 5, 2012

    We do have IP based control in place already. However, it isn't effective anymore. We've even been checking user registration IPs against a common database of spammers. It however looks like the keyCaptcha is quite successful in stopping the automated spammers.
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  • vinci

    Member • Sep 6, 2012

    what kind of spamming issues CE is facing now these days even after the captcha and other security mechanism ? Does it needs more security as of now ?
    • If a user reaches a threshold number of posts,only then he/she would be able to add signature.
    • SMS secure question/code
    • 3 times wrong password will block account for 2-3 days and after upon complete verification account re activates .
    many more options are available these days apart from these can be utilized
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  • vinci

    Member • Sep 6, 2012

    upgrade technology use to build CE may help for sure 😉
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  • Kaustubh Katdare

    Administrator • Sep 6, 2012

    Spam attack because of human spammers is next to impossible to control.
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  • simplycoder

    Member • Sep 6, 2012

    I agree with BigK, human spammers are almost impossible to control with code.
    but if we fight it together, we can outnumber them easily.
    It will take a while,but soon they would realize the joint efforts.

    @BigK, Can we add a security module as in when a spammer is deleted or banned, no new account can be created with his emailID, or from his IP address (now this needs to be explored as there might be multiple users from same IP)
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  • Kaustubh Katdare

    Administrator • Sep 6, 2012

    We currently allow only one email ID per account and even if someone changes their email ID; they'll have to confirm it by clicking on the account activation link. In fact, we have several advance techniques to ban the spammers based on IP, Email, Geolocation and so on; but they aren't very effective on human spammers. What happens these days is the companies that fool clients in the name of SEO go on hiring cheap workers who are given a list of popular boards. They're then asked to register on them and post the links or create profiles.

    No system in the world can stop them. Even facebook admits that 1% of all the profiles they have are fake; but I'm 100% sure that the number in fact is much bigger.

    What I'm curious to know is how Wikipedia handles spam. They've very sophisticated mechanisms in place and even have human editors to take care of their domains.

    What I request all the active users of CE is to keep an eye on new registrations and use the 'report' functionality as soon as you spot anything objectionable. It only requires a simple 'Click' from you to repot the spam.
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  • Rupam Das

    Member • Sep 11, 2012

    1. Declare proudly that CE is rel=NOFOLLOW by default. At the time of registration.
    2. Deactivate live links for posters bellow certain posts.
    3. Integrate Simple Question Module while posting new thread, keep the question more of simple engineers stuff. Like we represent current by which letter? C/I? Spammer will always select C.

    Trust me on the suggestions. With some simple PHP coding and twicking you can mod the postbit!
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  • Kaustubh Katdare

    Administrator • Sep 11, 2012

    The paid spammers don't really care whether the links are nofollow. The current system called 'KeyCaptcha' is doing fantastically well to prevent spammers from logging in.

    In my wildest dreams, I want to make the human verification so hard that only the best of the best get in. Just like the IIMs do through CAT 😛
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  • mail154

    Member • Jul 24, 2013

    Rupam Das
    1. Declare proudly that CE is rel=NOFOLLOW by default. At the time of registration.
    2. Deactivate live links for posters bellow certain posts.
    3. Integrate Simple Question Module while posting new thread, keep the question more of simple engineers stuff. Like we represent current by which letter? C/I? Spammer will always select C.

    Trust me on the suggestions. With some simple PHP coding and twicking you can mod the postbit!

    There are the people who don't spam and at the same time they don't how they mention current. if they select c and would you block their account? unknowleged should not be punished. only spammers.

    And Secondly Nowadays the spammers are so intelligent they do whatever they are able to, to ensure their spam mail doesn't enter spambox. They would easily clear that check. human spammers are very uncontrollable with code.
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  • Jeffrey Arulraj

    Member • Jul 24, 2013

    mail154
    There are the people who don't spam and at the same time they don't how they mention current. if they select c and would you block their account? unknowleged should not be punished. only spammers.

    And Secondly Nowadays the spammers are so intelligent they do whatever they are able to, to ensure their spam mail doesn't enter spambox. They would easily clear that check. human spammers are very uncontrollable with code.
    But technology has developed mate

    Now authentication has changed up volumes

    We have removed bot spammers a lot only a few man spammers they get blocked once active CEans Like you just report them to the moderator
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  • simplycoder

    Member • Jul 24, 2013

    I think when it comes to human spammers, the only thing that would help is by reporting them to moderators, and let them decide.
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  • Sarathkumar Chandrasekaran

    Member • Jul 24, 2013

    Joint hands create marvelous sounds-Try to be honest .Latest technologies had changed the way we see and we should update to latest tech to vanish spams.
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  • mail154

    Member • Jul 24, 2013

    Conqueror
    But technology has developed mate

    Now authentication has changed up volumes

    We have removed bot spammers a lot only a few man spammers they get blocked once active CEans Like you just report them to the moderator

    Exactly Thats What I Have Said Friend Bot Spammers could be controlled.Not Human Spammers. They Could Be Controlled only by reporting.Thats why most of this kind of forums have that facility
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