UESP Forums

Dealt with.

viewtopic.php?f=14&t=20773
Apparently bots play Morrowind?

Wow, haven't had to delete one of those in a while. Banned and post deleted.

Looks like the Skyrim activity is attracting the first of the Spam-bots.

The spam-pocalypse is nigh

Website link is for homes for sale... and not in the Imperial City: http://forums.uesp.net/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=63102

Interesting Sig and Interests: http://forums.uesp.net/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=63114

Taken care of.

http://forums.uesp.net/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=63132

Website Link and Sig: Wall Art

Jeff, I deleted the post you reported in Defense of Bruma help, made by smallfishchen - but I'm so hopelessly helpless in determining about bots and stuff, so I leave it to someone else to check the member all the way.



This one was pretty clear, it's been dealt with.

Banned and dealt with.

not sure, but in the Oblivion thread concerning rebooting and reflowing and balling or some nonsense with the PS3, the OP might be a bot. Lindai pointed this out, and I am inclined to agree.

Life Style Home Decor as a website link: http://forums.uesp.net/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=63144

Dealt with. Good catch.

If you spot any in the member list whose usernames are a person's name with suffix "mdz", these are persistent bots who keep coming back and pestering us every so often. I've repeatedly banned them, but they must be cycling through a list of forums, rejoining by creating a free Email and random person's name. It's always the same pattern. Username has the "mdz" suffix, zero post count, website link is a blatant ad and obvious dead giveaway sales blurb in their profile and sig.

They're making it too easy for us, although they're annoying to keep on top of. It's the digital equivalent of playing "whack-a-mole"!

memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=63172

Pretty sure this is a bot, lulz.

search.php?author_id=63172&sr=posts I wanna move there!

It's not a particularly good deal anyway. Who wants half a toilet?

Out and gone and banned. Thanks for the note, Vivec's Tears.

And Veck: a good point.

i smells something fishy...memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=63174

posts make no sense in terms of the current discussion and they seem to simply copy another post in the thread.


Here be some evidence to support my claim

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2
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4

http://forums.uesp.net/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=63169

Suspicious link for how to get whiter teeth

I have taken care of both.

What exactly constitutes a suspicious/spam link (thats what i mainly look for)

I'm not strong in this area, but perhaps your question could result in some kind of "Traveler's Guide" to the [spam]bot world?

1. They are bots = they don't really think, but for example, repeat comments others have made --- the bot reads a message, and repeats it --- utterly brainless, as you can see. The thing is, the bot may have found a residence in a members computer, and whenever that member gives a reply, it's more fuel for the machine. Before I had my own Internet connection, I used the library, and I got this e-mail from a person, that my computer had sent spam... of course it was the library computer, but it shows clearly that the biggest problem is not, as such, persons sending spam, but them getting control over other computers, thus enabling them to send their stuff through thousands of computers.
Like scribbane writes, "posts make no sense in terms of the current discussion and they seem to simply copy another post in the thread." A pretty good description, I would say. I also (!) make posts that make no sense... but you can clearly see I've made other posts too, and somewhere along the line there is a make sense.

2. They advertise, and this is perhaps their main reason: when you check their profile, you find a link to a commercial site... not so rarely something dirty, I'm sure you get my meaning. Quite simply, if they don't try to disturb in some general way, they try to make money. These two may well be combined.

Like I wrote, it's not my strong area. I would never be able to keep this Forum clean, and I doubt the Moderator Team would either. We need the help from members, and it's always good to hear and read there are some alert ones out there. You ring the bell when you feel for it, we don't mind a few false alarms.

Totally inadequate as an answer, here it is. Cheers, all.

Copying posts? That's a new twist. Someone has programmed a bot to read the web page it's downloaded and copy text to make it "seem" more human. Doesn't work, obviously. We're too intelligent here to fall for dumb computer-generated copycat behaviour!

Excellent spots on the bots, guys. Keep up the great work!

And to the spammers. Go away, far, far away. Meditate deeply on the meaning of "annoying pest" for a decade or three. Should be enough time for you do what I'd dearly love all idiots to do... Grow a second brain cell, rub the two together and you might just get a spark!

What's the betting that will end up in someone's sig as a quote?

Im surprised my little rhyme "3 rules we must obey the most,
don't spam or troll, or necro-post" didn't get sig quoted

Our newest member, Ameliamdz.