15 Anti Spam Plugins for WordPress
Anybody who’s familiar with WordPress knows the pain that comment spam can be – I can’t imagine how much some of the popular sites out their receive on a daily basis. With that in mind, we thought we’d look at the top 15 anti spam plugins to prevent you getting an email everytime you get a comment about how much they love your site with a link to viagra underneath it.
Akismet
The best anti-spam plugin for WordPress. Bundled with WordPress, Akismet requires a registration key, but is simple to setup and offers excellent “set-it-and-forget-it” spam protection for WordPress.
bcSpamBlock
JavaScript-based anti-spam plugin that uses JavaScript to filter out spam quietly and discretely. Users without JavaScript should prove their legitimacy via copy-&-paste CAPTCHA exercise.
Comment Spam Stopper
Blue Anvil’s anti-spam plugin is CAPTCHA-based and includes JavaScript validation to ensure that required fields within the comment form have been populated with data. To save time, the CAPTCHA field is not displayed when logged into Admin.
Comment Spam Trap
Delivers a double death blow by adding a hidden spam field and an identical but required CAPTCHA field. This simple logic tricks mortal spam bots into revealing themselves and getting blocked. Also blocks trackback spam and optionally sends email notifications of anything it blocks.
Cookies for Comments
Takes a different approach by adding a randomly generated stylesheet URL to your theme. When that URL is requested by the browser, a cookie is set that is required for the visitor/user to leave a comment. The plugin homepage is kinda thin, so scan the WordPress Forum to gain more insight about this remarkable plugin.
Did You Pass Math
Demands the user to solve a simple math problem, like “what’s 1+2?” If they can’t do it, they’re considered a bot and the comment is blocked. Simple yet effective anti-spam plugin with nothing to configure – just set and forget.
JSSpamBlock
Uses JavaScript to filter out spam bots and their filthy comments. Legitimate users prove their identity by entering a given number. Offers fallback for non-JavaScript visitors.
Peter’s Custom Anti-Spam
A full-featured CAPTCHA-based anti-spam plugin for WordPress. Demands all commentators to identify a random word before comment submission. Words are displayed as images and are completely customizable. Features: random font display, no cookies required, no JavaScript required, auto-generated audio for visually impaired users, selective blocking of trackbacks and pingbacks, and much much more. First choice for full-flavored CAPTCHA plugin.
Referrer Bouncer
Referrer Bouncer offers powerful protection against referrer spam. Easy to use and requires no configuration. As it says, “It is like the strong silent bouncer at your favorite club.” The instant cure for the referrer spam that ails you.
Simple Trackback Validation
Solid protection against trackback spam. Trackback validation is done with an IP/referrer check and by checking the trackback page for your URL. Bottom line: an excellent solution for stopping trackback spam. Includes Settings Page for simple configuration, including the option to delete or spam blocked trackbacks.
reCAPTCHA Plugin
Displays words from old books that users must correctly interpret. Uses the popular reCAPTCHA service that is used on popular sites such as Twitter, Facebook, and StumbleUpon. Upside: use of this service helps to digitize old books. Downside: requires a key to work.
Word Verify
CAPTCHA-based anti-spam plugin that demands the user to enter a simple word in plain text (rather than an image). This makes it much easier for users to get it right the first time, whilst filtering out lots of automated spam. This plugin is probably best for smaller sites and blogs, as they aren’t generally targeted by the heavier OCR-capable spambots. Or so the thinking goes. Includes Settings Page for basic configuration.
WP-HashCash
CAPTCHA-based anti-spam plugin that claims to be 100% effective at blocking all spam and no real comments. Also blocks most pingback & trackback spam. Features Settings Page for statistics and configuration. And a huge bonus, WP-HashCash is “100% standards compliant XHTML 1.1 and works with both jQuery and Prototype.”
Spam Totally free
Spam Totally free is an “extremely powerful anti-spam plugin for WordPress that eliminates comment spam, including trackback and pingback spam.” Spam Totally free has many features, including no CAPTCHA required for site visitors, a spam-free contact form, and dashboard counter with blocked spam count.
Let us know if you think we’ve missed any out! Thanks, IT Support Leeds.
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