Use either the quotemeta() function, or the \Q...\E escape sequences. 
$string =~ /\Q$text\E/;

# or

$safe = quotemeta $text;
$string =~ /$safe/;

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In reply to Re: How to escape out *?+ in strings for substit. by japhy
in thread How to escape out *?+ in strings for substit. by bagel

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