Also, this spam has been happening in this almost exact same format for months now the only thing that changes is special characters. it almost seems like they are not doing anything about it tbh. i think if we get rid of spammers that posts phone numbers in their first few posts, then that will deal with alot of this spam we are currently encountering. To me it is like you said, a wip. And if we deal with the telephone number issue, then the rest will be easier to deal with. | [reply] |
You can indeed look at it as the spam hasn't changed format because they haven't banned that specific format.
But as was correctly pointed out, banning that specific format will block the spam for perhaps a single day, probably less. So, the admin could spend a bit of time banning that specific format and enjoy a slight break in the spam, only to have a new format appear. That might seem like a worthwhile trade-off if you consider the value proposition over the span of a day or two.
But a week later, nobody will remember that the spam stopped for a few hours a week ago, but your code base will remember this chunk of code for dealing with this one specific format of spam that happened once. Then you'll either continue with a long series of such steps and have a long series of short breaks in spam and a growing and unwieldy pile of code that you have to keep maintaining and the cost starts to clearly outweigh the tiny benefits. Or you just do it a few times and feel stupid for having wasted those small bits of time for no lasting benefit.
So, yes, if you don't look past step 2 in the (fairly obvious) progression, then you can get frustrated about step 1 not happening. But I'm sure the site admin is frustrated with all of the people who are frustrated because s/he knows that they aren't bothering to even look past step 2.
Dealing with spam effectively requires looking way beyond step 2 and doing things much, much different than banning specific formats.
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Well i know once they figure out the telephone numbers are no longer a no-go if your new member with post count less than 10, they will seek other means. But as with any other type of spam, it is a work in progress trying to stop it, and will always need up keep anyway. For me to incorporate this will only add to what is already in place, which works great other than letting telephone numbers through.
dont get me wrong i am not trying to argue with anyone, i just like to debate, mainly because i am learning :P
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