7 Tips To Stop WordPress Comment Spam

This is a guest post by Adrienne Erin.

Open discussions make blogs fun to read and engaging. After all, a one-sided conversation might be satisfying for the blogger who initially writes it, but the fluid nature of subsequent agreement and disagreement is what makes readers click on posts and get absorbed in content. However, not everyone visits a blog with the intention of adding something worthwhile to the conversation. Read on to discover seven ways to give spammers the boot. wordpress comment spam


Know What To Look For

The first step is to spot spammers when they strike. Often, their comments are peppered with misspelled words, nonsensical phrases and links to their own companies or causes. Also, keep an eye out for comments that have nothing to do with the topic at hand. If you run a blog that focuses on personal finance, yet you're getting flooded with comments about personal injury lawyers, then that's a red flag.


Show That You're Aware

Current posts are one of the clearest indicators of an active blog. However, beyond just keeping your content relevant, interact with your readers, too. Respond to their comments, even just to let them know that you appreciate them taking time to speak their mind. This shows that you're aware of what's happening on your blog, and gives the perception you're not an easy target for spammers.


Put Some Blocks in Place

Spammers commonly reply to older posts. With that in mind, you can opt to close them to comments. This is a reasonable compromise, because while it doesn't shut down the exchange of dialogue altogether, you do encourage timely and appropriate discussions. Also, WordPress has tools that allow you to block posters from using certain words you've frequently noticed in comments made by spammers.


Make Users Register

Sometimes, discouraging spammers is as simple as requiring users to register before they're allowed to make a comment. Bear in mind that this may deter legitimate visitors from taking time to fill out a form. If you're worried about that, consider adding a short note to your blog. Explain that the reason you only permit comments from registered users is because you've become frustrated by the diligent efforts of spammers.


Restrict Link Usage

Limiting the amount of links that can be included in a comment also cuts back on the amount of spam you have to deal with. By going into the Settings panel when you're signed into WordPress, you can adjust things so that users may only include one link per comment. It's also possible to get notifications of users who are posting comments with links at a faster than normal rate.


Ban IP Addresses

If you're dealing with a particularly troublesome spammer, it might be necessary to take decisive action by banning their IP address. WordPress offers plug-ins such as WP-Ban that make it easy for you to see the IP addresses of anyone who is visiting your blog, and ban offenders who've crossed the line. Some of these tools simply show banned users a custom message after they try to make a comment, so you'll never have to interact with them at all.


Make Comments Subject To Approval

If your blog is still at a manageable size, it's smart to insist on approving every comment before it's seen by the public. This isn't a practical solution if you receive hundreds of comments per day, but is an excellent approach if you prefer hands-on methods.

Also, you can tweak a setting which requires a person's initial comment to be approved by a moderator, and gives them freedom to post at will after that. Both of these tactics could require a significant time commitment on your behalf, but they rob a spammer of the gratification of seeing a post appear immediately, too.

Winning the battle against WordPress spammers is not a lost cause. It's best to implement some of the suggestions above gradually, so you can determine which strategies work best. By changing your settings and being more demanding about who's allowed to post and what their comments can contain, you can begin to make headway and let spammers know you're aware of their tricks.

About the author
Adrienne Erin is a blogger and aspiring writer. When she’s not blogging about tech and social media, you might find her practicing her French, whipping up some recipes she found on Pinterest, or obsessing over vintage Mustang apparel.

18 comments to "7 Tips To Stop WordPress Comment Spam"

Gas Safety Certificate London February 6, 2013 at 2:26 PM    

Yes, I absolutely agree with you. Those 7 tips are really helpful to avoid spam commenting.

Anonymous,  February 9, 2013 at 4:33 PM    

ver useful post.Thanks

Anonymous,  February 9, 2013 at 6:04 PM    

Thank you for information as always your post is tremendously useful and enriched with great knowledge.

jobdirumah review February 10, 2013 at 1:28 PM    

ok. this is nice and really helpful. Thanks.

Kool Design Maker March 5, 2013 at 6:10 PM    

I have two blogs on WordPress one paid and other is on free platform. I am getting a lot of spam comments on my paid domain blog and i am very upset about it. I was thinking that i should install Discuss commenting system. I want to ask you that is it possible? and how it will be helpful for my blog?.

Ethan Bruce March 6, 2013 at 5:13 PM    

You have just posted an awesome post. My blog is Effected with spamming I got bored deleting spams. Thanks to you for showing me the way to get rid of spams. I think my problem is solved

These tips are very useful to avoid spam comments that the spam comments have a really a hindrance for most of bloggers.

Andria @ Serviced offices in Hong Kong March 12, 2013 at 6:34 PM    

Every day I receive lots of spam comments for my blog. Sometime they make me troubles. Thanks for your useful tips.

Yaso March 15, 2013 at 2:42 AM    

Hello, Great info for Bloggers..to avoids spam comments..
thanks for sharing..

Mahendra March 23, 2013 at 8:07 PM    

Nice post at all
Spams are the thing which make a blogger sad when he/she open admin of his site and spams are there for wishing welcome.Nice tips for stopping wordpress comment spams.

avnish gautam April 24, 2013 at 6:51 PM    

These are really effective ways to stop spam comments on Wordpress, some of them I already apply on my blog. Thanks.

Stop WordPress Comment Spam May 21, 2013 at 2:12 AM    

This is ultimate guide to stop spam in wordpress. I have used one and i block spam comments in my blog.

Brunner Nathan May 22, 2013 at 3:57 AM    

Thank you for this tip,
I had spam problems before setting up Akismet...
Best regards, Brunner Nathan

Ritwick June 1, 2013 at 11:39 AM    

using anti spam plugins is perhaps the best way to combat spam comments. Anyway i have always used Akismet and never had a problem with spam. I haven't used the htaccess method but i'll try and use it. Nice article anyway. Thanks.

Singlem June 17, 2013 at 6:45 PM    

You have to pay for this Akisment programme! As a I already have a paid Word Press blog with my hosting provider, I was surprised when, after activation, I was asked to pay!

Jemma Taylor July 5, 2013 at 5:26 PM    

Interesting way to prevent spam comments. I use the plugin Akismet but its not full proof, there are some comments that does filter though. Thanks !!

Or Weissler July 26, 2013 at 5:55 PM    

Important option to hinder fakes posts. I personally use them the main wordpress plugin Akismet nevertheless in no way comprehensive substantiation, you can find posts which will should clean nonetheless. With thanks!!

mwrweb.com September 22, 2013 at 3:21 AM    

Akismet does a great job in protecting blogs from comment spam.

Also I am not sure if the banning of IP addresses is going to work, as a lot of these spammers use software with proxies.

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