Author Topic: Lots of spambot accounts?  (Read 27700 times)

Indirik

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Lots of spambot accounts?
« Topic Start: July 04, 2012, 08:03:15 PM »
Over the past two days, a lot of new user accounts have been created, almost certainly by spambots. None of them have made any edits. So far as I know, this doesn't affect anything. Since they didn't edit, they couldn't have slipped any links in or anything, correct? Here's a sample of the new accounts:

10:03, 4 July 2012 Ramyez6mh (Talk | contribs | block) created a user account
03:25, 4 July 2012 Bennie0137 (Talk | contribs | block) created a user account
02:30, 4 July 2012 Dallas7738 (Talk | contribs | block) created a user account
23:29, 3 July 2012 Coa002vq (Talk | contribs | block) created a user account
23:06, 3 July 2012 3jbv64ijh5 (Talk | contribs | block) created a user account
22:38, 3 July 2012 Jjkvwbvev (Talk | contribs | block) created a user account
22:00, 3 July 2012 Rauzh484 (Talk | contribs | block) created a user account
21:23, 3 July 2012 LanJ8Liex (Talk | contribs | block) created a user account
21:20, 3 July 2012 Revo70 (Talk | contribs | block) created a user account
10:43, 3 July 2012 Liniwhzd (Talk | contribs | block) created a user account
07:40, 3 July 2012 Xbvsjd357c (Talk | contribs | block) created a user account
05:59, 3 July 2012 Jianhydwd (Talk | contribs | block) created a user account
04:21, 3 July 2012 4tcy1vh1o (Talk | contribs | block) created a user account
04:05, 3 July 2012 Vtwsbl98 (Talk | contribs | block) created a user account
01:23, 3 July 2012 MVSdG8jae (Talk | contribs | block) created a user account
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Zakilevo

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Re: Lots of spambot accounts?
« Reply #1: July 04, 2012, 08:07:02 PM »
Yay spambots! Please do get rid of them before they go crazy.

Tom

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Re: Lots of spambot accounts?
« Reply #2: July 04, 2012, 10:28:56 PM »
Might be preparing, testing our defenses, or tried to edit and couldn't. Wiping them would certainly be good.


Indirik

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Re: Lots of spambot accounts?
« Reply #3: July 04, 2012, 10:51:16 PM »
I presume that locking would be good enough.
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Cren

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Re: Lots of spambot accounts?
« Reply #4: July 05, 2012, 10:06:28 AM »
Get them before they wipe out our works, plant links and cause mayhem.
Just stay alive and kicking, raise your voice when its needed. Through reason you can show the mistakes of others, something violence can't do.

I don't break rules, I bend them- a lot.

egamma

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Re: Lots of spambot accounts?
« Reply #5: July 06, 2012, 04:58:22 PM »
Get them before they wipe out our works, plant links and cause mayhem.

We do not talk about Project Mayhem.

Lanyon

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Re: Lots of spambot accounts?
« Reply #6: July 07, 2012, 12:50:37 AM »
revo70 is my actual wiki account so don't wipe that.

Indirik

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Re: Lots of spambot accounts?
« Reply #7: July 07, 2012, 01:19:49 AM »
If you have made a valid edit, then it won't be locked. That's how I usually tell if it's a spambot account.
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Tom

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Re: Lots of spambot accounts?
« Reply #8: July 29, 2012, 11:05:32 AM »
There's lots of spam bot accounts created every day, but they don't seem to be making any edits.

Anyone got a clue to
a) what's going on
and
b) can we stop this crap in some easy way?


Cren

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Re: Lots of spambot accounts?
« Reply #9: July 29, 2012, 01:07:39 PM »
Maybe you can create some code to link our BM a/c to wiki a/c, so that those who don't have a BM a/c can't create an wiki a/c? Not the best idea though.
Just stay alive and kicking, raise your voice when its needed. Through reason you can show the mistakes of others, something violence can't do.

I don't break rules, I bend them- a lot.

Tom

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Re: Lots of spambot accounts?
« Reply #10: July 29, 2012, 01:21:46 PM »
Maybe you can create some code to link our BM a/c to wiki a/c, so that those who don't have a BM a/c can't create an wiki a/c? Not the best idea though.

If someone knows enough about MediaWiki extensions to help me out, I'll consider it.

Indirik

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Re: Lots of spambot accounts?
« Reply #11: July 29, 2012, 01:56:40 PM »
I've been watching. The accounts get created, but they never do any edits. Probably broken spambots?
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Tom

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Re: Lots of spambot accounts?
« Reply #12: July 30, 2012, 10:30:37 PM »
Does anyone know if it is possible to, say, prevent the creation of users with numbers in the username? That would weed out 90% of the spambots right there.

Maybe one can configure BadBehaviour to do that? I have that installed (it might be what's preventing them from actually posting spam).


Indirik

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Re: Lots of spambot accounts?
« Reply #13: July 30, 2012, 10:44:47 PM »
Due to the way BadBehavior works, I very much doubt that it can monitor/police usernames.


However, this may be applicable: http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Extension:TitleBlacklist

"The Title Blacklist extension allows wiki administrators to block the creation, movement and upload of pages which title matches one or more regular expressions, as well as blocking creation of accounts with matching usernames."
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House Talratheon

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Re: Lots of spambot accounts?
« Reply #14: August 04, 2012, 01:55:47 PM »
I have a somewhat of a simple solution, goes along with the wiki team idea.

In order to make an account it has to be approved by a wiki Administrator, you would be encouraged to make an account in accordance with your battle master family last name or Forum name for verification before being approved.

so let the spam bots make away it'll never get approved without proper verification.