Anti-Spam: Spam Protection | Block Spam Users, Comments, Forms

July 06, 2024

Anti-Spam: Spam Protection | Block Spam Users, Comments, Forms Plugin

Robust security and spam prevention. Leverage our pre-defined allow/block lists. Adjust configurable settings on too many hits, quick responses, etc.

Antispam.

Stop spam emails, spam comments, spam registration, and spam bots and spammers in general. Run diagnostic tests, view activity, and much more with this well-maintained, mature plugin.

Stop Spammers adds security that should kill off many of your spam worries straight out-of-the-box. Because every website is different (especially if you have integrated a payment gateway), we offer dozens of features you can leverage to meet your website’s specific needs. Our 50+ configuration options make personalization easy.

Features

Extremely granular control, so that any variety of website can create a special custom cocktail just for their particular spam issues:

Block suspicious behavior
Block spam words, disposable emails, URL shortener links, all URLs TLDs and more
Connect third-party spam defense services
Block countries
Block/allow IPs, emails, and usernames manually
Hide admin notices permanently
Allow users to request access and send email when allow list request is approved
Members-only mode
Core forms CAPTCHA
Mass lookup and disable registered users and pending comments
Disable WordPress automated emails

We sincerely thank everyone who has contributed to the project through donations, feedback, and bug reporting. Every little bit goes a long way.

Installation

The most powerful spam prevention for WordPress: 50+ spam-blocking settings, dianostic testing, log reports, and much more.

Go to Plugins > Add New from your WP admin menu, search for Stop Spammers, install, and activate.

Download the plugin and unzip it.
Upload the plugin folder to your wp-content/plugins folder.
Activate the plugin from the plugins page in the admin.

Screenshots

FAQ

Can I use Stop Spammers with Cloudflare?

Yes. But, you may need to restore visitor IPs: https://support.cloudflare.com/hc/sections/200805497-Restoring-Visitor-IPs.

Can I use Stop Spammers with WooCommerce (and other ecommerce plugins)?

Yes. But, in some configurations, you may need to go to Stop Spammers > Protection Options > Toggle on the option for “Only Use the Plugin for Standard WordPress Forms” > Save if you’re running into any issues.

Can I use Stop Spammers with Akismet?

Yes. Stop Spammers can even check Akismet for an extra layer of protection.

Can I use Stop Spammers with Jetpack?

Yes and no. You can use all Jetpack features except for Jetpack Protect, as it conflicts with Stop Spammers.

Can I use Stop Spammers with Wordfence (and other spam and security plugins)?

Yes. The two can compliment each other. However, if you have only a small amount of hosting resources (mainly memory) or aren’t even allowing registration on your website, using both might be overkill.

Why is 2FA failing?

Toggle off the “Check Credentials on All Login Attempts” option and try again.

Is Stop Spammers GDPR-compliant?

Yes. See: https://law.stackexchange.com/questions/28603/how-to-satisfy-gdprs-consent-requirement-for-ip-logging. Stop Spammers does not collect any data for any other purpose (like marketing or tracking). It is purely for legitimate security purposes only. Additionally, if any of your users ever requested it, all data can be deleted.

Changelog

2024.7

[Fix] Documentation has been restored (but probably needs work https://github.com/bhadaway/stop-spammers/wiki)

2024.6

[Fix] AJAX script JSON error handling
[New] Added version numbering to enqueued script and style files

2024.5

[Enhanced] Security

2024.4

[Notice] New owner (https://github.com/bhadaway/stop-spammers/issues/188)
[Notice] Premium has been discontinued
[Notice] HiveMind API has been discontinued

2024.3

[Notice] We’re making a big push to audit Stop Spammers — now’s the time to jump in if you know how to code and can contribute fixes: https://github.com/bhadaway/stop-spammers.

2024.2

[Notice] We’re making a big push to audit Stop Spammers — now’s the time to jump in if you know how to code and can contribute fixes: https://github.com/bhadaway/stop-spammers.

2024.1

[Update] readme

2024

[Fix] Arithmetic captcha

2023.4.1

[Update] Toggle hotfix

2023.4

[New] Check for any URL posted in a comment

2023.3

[New] User filter/lookup to find spam registrations based on email top level domain, where first name = last name, and comment history
[New] Mass disable users
[New] Mass delete pending comments

2023.2

[New] Disable WordPress admin email notifications

2023.1

[Fix] Escape code

2023

[Enhanced] Security

2022.6

[Enhanced] Security

2022.5

[Update] Thank you message

2022.4

[New] Add IP addresses from comments to allow or block list
[Update] Thank you message

2022.3

[Fix] JavaScript error

2022.2

[Update] Allowing users with older versions of PHP to upgrade

2022.1

[New] Fundraising campaign

2022

[New] HiveMindᴮᴱᵀᴬ — A community IP block list (limited)
[Fix] CAPTCHAs

2021.20

[Fix] PHP 8 error

2021.19

[New] Enable CAPTCHA on WordPress core forms

2021.18

[Enhanced] Security

2021.17

[New] hCaptcha integration

2021.16

[New] Allow Square

2021.15

[Fix] Checking for periods in emails
[Fix] jQuery error

2021.14

[Fix] Network toggle fix
[Fix] Design issue with icons on some browsers

2021.13

[Update] Cloudflare IPs
[Fix] SFS report

2021.12

[Fix] Minor fixes

2021.11

[Fix] Settings fix

2021.10

[Enhanced] Security

2021.9

[Enhanced] Security

2021.8

[Update] UI improvements
[Enhanced] Notification Control feature
[Fix] Math question

2021.7

[Update] PayPal IPs
[Enhanced] Cleanup

2021.6

[New] Notification Control feature
[New] Sortable registered date column on Users page
[Enhanced] Security
[Enhanced] Code audit and cleanup

2021.5

[Fix] Email fix

2021.4

[Fix] SFS report fix

2021.3

[Fix] Error fixes

2021.2.1

[Fix] Login issue

2021.2

[New] Strings are now translation-ready
[Update] UI improvements
[Update] Safety checks for WooCommerce
[Enhanced] When approving allow requests, the email address is now whitelisted
[Enhanced] Code audit and cleanup
[Fix] “Clear the Requests” toggles off other settings
[Fix] Too many periods feature

2021.1

[Update] Third-party service IP lists

2021

[New] Private mode feature
[Update] UI improvements
[Enhanced] Too many periods feature
[Enhanced] Emails are now off by default (to avoid potential issues with server reputation)
[Enhanced] Code audit and cleanup
[Fix] Shortened URL option only checks for exact matches now

2020.6.2

[Update] Minor UI improvements
[Fix] Duplicate email issue

2020.6.1

[Fix] PHP notice

2020.6

[New] Send email when allow list request is approved (community request)
[New] Approve or Block action in request email with link to Allow List page (community request)
[Update] Update Stop Spammers menu icon to ‘S’ logo
[Fix] Conditional fields hidden on page load when option is enabled
[Fix] Updates to multisite (community reported)
[Fix] Shortcode and HTML support on Spam Message (community reported)
[Fix] Wrong key used for the spam reason in the allow request email template sent to the web admin

2020.5.1

[Fix] Block if email has too many periods

2020.5

[New] Block URL shortening service links

2020.4.5

[New] Notice

2020.4.4

[Fix] PHP warnings

2020.4.3

[Enhanced] Code cleanup

2020.4.2

[Revert] Removed gettext

2020.4.1

[Fix] Hotfix

2020.4

[New] Force username-only login
[New] Force email-only login
[New] Disable custom passwords
[Enhanced] 2,500+ disposable email domains added to block list
[Update] Support notice

2020.3

[Update] Usability updates

2020.2

[Update] Plugin audit and cleanup

2020.1.1-2020.1.4

[Update] Various hotfixes

2020.1

[New] Check for Tor Exit Nodes
[New] Check for too many periods
[New] Check for too many hyphens
[New] Allow Stripe
[New] Allow Authorize.Net
[New] Allow Braintree
[New] Allow Recurly
[Update] Admin UI enhancements

2019.6

New owner