If you see these comments, I'm sorry. I'm doing my best. They seem to come in waves.
Many bloggers combat comment spam by instituting a word-verification request for comments. I simply can't bring myself to do this. For one thing, the words and numbers in the word-verification process are too hard to read. It's aggravating, and I fear some people will leave my blog without commenting. However, what's even more important is that I don't feel my readers should be the ones to bear the annoyance.
Word verification might stop spam comments, but it also requires readers to pay the price as well, and I won't do that to you.
As of now you can still freely comment on my blog without the word-verification hurdle. For blog posts over 5 days old, I moderate comments. This means that your comment doesn't get posted on my blog until I manually approve it. This again should take less than 30 minutes, as I get notifications on my phone. I decided to selectively moderate comments because spammers seem to zero in on certain older posts. Comments on blog posts newer than 5 days go straight through. I feel you have the right to immediately see what you've written, plus it's the best way to foster discussion.
I know there are other options and blogging platforms that handle spam comments better, but I'm not really thrilled about the monumental task of moving my blog. Life's too short, man. I have other things to do.
In talking with other bloggers, I know that I am in the minority here on my stance with word verification and I'm ok with that. I'll do my best to keep the spam out and the real comments in.
So if you see an occasional spam comment here, just know I'm on it. Or sleeping and will be on it as soon as I have some caffeine. Is that ok? Are we cool?
We are cool! I don't like the word verification either!! Sometimes I just give up and don't leave a comment after trying several times to type in the right answer! I do like your idea of moderating after a post is several days old. I just might try doing that with mine. Though I haven't had a problem with spam comments....yet.
ReplyDeleteSee...that's my greatest fear. That someone will just exit my blog without leaving a comment. What if that person has all the answers to my genealogy questions? Ahhh!
DeleteIf your blog isn't getting spam, I wouldn't worry about moderating anything yet. I haven't decided if I'm going to keep moderating or not. Most real people don't comment on older posts, and it seems to be the best way to keep spam from seeing the light of day.
Hey, Amy, you're cool! I have SO much trouble with Captcha and comment verification. They have driven me to spend more time "Liking" a post on FB than leaving a meaningful comment on a blog.
ReplyDeleteI use the Squarespace blogging service and keep comment verification turned off. The SqSp spam filters are very effective and seem to catch 99%. Also, I find that by posting after 3am PST, my spam comments drop (Guy Kawasaki suggested this). I agree that old posts seem to be picked up more for spam, so I sometimes go back and turn off comments on those posts. Sorry. But, I'd rather keep it easy for readers to respond to current posts than put up safeguards site wide.
You do a great job moderating comments and keeping the conversation moving. I bet this one is "live" within minutes :>)
~ Denise
I'm cool? No, YOU'RE cool.
DeleteUsing my site statistics, I've noticed that a lot of spam comes from other countries like India and Russia, and it does so over night when they're awake and I'm not.
If I can't read the word verification, I click that thing that throws out a new one, which always seems very easy. But I don't have it on my blog either. So far Blogger has caught most of the spam anyway. I've noticed too that most of the spam has been on old posts - and even then it's usually in the Spam folder -, so your solution is a very good one. Smart! That's why you get the big bucks.
ReplyDeleteWendy, I approach word verification the same way. Usually I just guess at what I can't read and that works. However, I don't know if everyone else does it that way, or they just get flustered and back out altogether.
DeleteBlogger is usually pretty good, though I just had a rough patch. Seems to have worked itself out.
Amy, that is just too bad that you have been targeted with spam. Frustrating. And you are right--the captcha devices are frustrating, too. Hard to strike the balance. (Although Denise may be right about that posting after 3 a.m. PST, which I also do.)
ReplyDeleteI absolutely thrive on the comments on my blog. It would be such a shame to have to limit, minimize, or disable access to comments. I really feel for you on this one.
Thanks. I have o problem going to battle with spammers behind the scenes. I just feel bad when a spam comment gets through. Readers don't need to see that.
DeleteAmy,
ReplyDeleteI think I've been dealing with the same spammers. As you say, they are targeting old posts which evidently have the right keywords. I hadn't thought of filtering comments moderation to older posts only. Thanks for the tip, oh cool, wise one!
You're welcome! There are about 4-5 old posts that are just getting bombed. I turned off comments to those posts altogether. Then I updated those posts with a little note about why you can't comment and instructions on how to reach me. I'm kind of obsessed with not missing any comments.
DeleteThis might be the best solution - targeting those few old posts that seemed to get bombed with spam. I will have to try this.
DeleteLike you, Amy, I use Blogger. I have noticed a TON of e-mail notifications on comments the spam filter has caught, but I did go in and look at comments today and I saw two spams on fairly recent posts that made it through.
ReplyDeleteAlso, like you, I hate CAPTCHA and word verification and all those other hoops, and I am one of those people that, unless my comment is really relevant, I'm NOT going to jump through those hoops to leave it. Therefore - since you and I seem to be in the minority when it comes to comment moderation - I don't leave a lot of comments anywhere.
Unlike you, I don't moderate comments on my older posts. Part of the reason is no smartphone, so no instant notification, and I want people to feel I want to read what they have to say. FWIW, some of my best leads have come from comments on my older posts.
I love your idea above about turning off comments (and adding the update note) on the posts that are getting bombed with spam.
I'm debating leaving old-post moderation on or not. It was a solution when there was an influx of spam and the Blogger filter hadn't caught up. Now it seems ok. We'll see. Like you, I want zero barriers to commenting for my readers.
DeleteI didn't know I could moderate comments on older posts. Thanks for telling us about that!
ReplyDeleteA few weeks ago I turned off the captcha so all comments go through. The most unfortunate thing is that even if blogger catches a spam comment and sends it to the spam folder, readers who have requested that comments from a post be sent to their email addresses receive the spam comments at the same time they appear in your mailbox.
It's a catch-22 trying to decide what's best but I think your moderation of older posts may be the best we can do now.
Nancy, thanks for commenting. I agree it's a catch-22 situation. Just trying to find a balance.
DeleteNancy brings up a good point! Guess that's another good reason to at least turn off comments on posts that are getting spammed a lot.
DeleteThanks for not requiring the capcha. For those of us who are blind, they are virtually impossible to complete, even if there is an audio option. Melissa Smith
ReplyDeleteMelissa, thank you for the feedback. I want everyone to be able to comment on this blog. And I want the process to be as easy as possible.
DeleteI kinda like the captchas. I treat it like trying to read poor handwriting on a census record, like when you can't quite tell what the name of that last child is, the one you never knew about, and the enumerator's handwriting is so bad that the best you can decipher is that the youngest boy in the family is named Toensli!
ReplyDeleteLove your blog, Amy. We'll live through any spam that might creep in.
Like you I seem to get most spam from Russia and, observing the characters, also China. All my comments are on moderation. Usually I screen them within hours. Indeed they seem to concentrate on older posts. Can't imagine anyone reacting to this rubbish. Here, in Holland, spamming is illegal with heavy fines (if they catch you). Maybe one day other countries will do what is necessary to fight this nuisance. Just continue with your blog, love reading it.
ReplyDeleteAs always Amy, you crack me up with your humor during a 'serious' conversation. The word verification does drive me crazy and I'm a 'youngster'. So... live while you're alive and march to your own drum. Glad to know you're on the job (well, when you're awake).
ReplyDeleteAmy, just wanted to let you know that your blog post is listed in my Fab Finds today at http://janasgenealogyandfamilyhistory.blogspot.com/2013/01/follow-fridayfab-finds-for-january-24.html
ReplyDeleteI'm like you, I hate Captchas...so hard to read. I AM NOT A ROBOT! They are also hard to respond to on phones and tablets. My iPhone doesn't let me see the Captcha while I am entering it and if I scroll up to see it I have to start over. And don't even get me started on "auto-correct" and captchas. AGGGH! Perhaps I need to switch to self-moderating. I'll have to think it over...thanks for the thought!
ReplyDeleteI have had to "give up" on comments on many blog posts, because I simply run out of patience. Three tries and I'm out! Because of this I the fact that you don't require it.
ReplyDeleteThank you for a very informative post. I have been increasingly bothered by spam from "Anonymous" - up to 3-4 a day which are captured by my spam box. Initially I was almost taken in by the complimentary nature of the comments until I grew suspicious. I too hate word verification, especially as I have poor eyesight and struggle wtih the letters & nos and have given up on occasions. However I never even realised that I had the W.V setting on my blog until a kind blogger mentioend it and suggested I dispense with it - and instructed me how to. To me Comments from fellow bloggers are the life blood of blogging.
ReplyDeleteAmy, I'm having this debate with myself regularly. Not all captcha's are equally awful. I have moderation on at my personal pages but I'm not happy about it. I admit though that a smartphone would likely change my position on moderation. The captcha I use at my pro site is not as obnoxious as some but I've seen even easier to use versions out there that I am looking into.
ReplyDeleteAs a reader though, I will admit to giving up on the captcha with the tiny, blurry numbers followed by the wavy letters so prevalent on some of my favorite sites.
Thanks for the food for thought.