User:Ah2190/SpottingSpammers

NOTE: This is not a definite guide to spotting all spammers with 100% efficiency. Also, this guide is to be considered unofficial and unsanctioned by this Wiki until further notice.

Spammers. These pesky little users - who are more often than not just a bot created by someone that is sent to wikis like this one - either create pages that have no connection to the wiki or edit pages with the intent of annoying the users of the wiki. However, while some spammers can be quickly spotted, others may lurk for days on end, waiting for the time to strike and spam the wiki. However, while some countermeasures that can be installed onto the wiki (like Captcha) can reduce the chances of certain spammers being able to spam the wiki, they are not fail-proof. Which is why I'm writing this guide - so that other users will be able to notice potential spammers, and that they know what to do with regards to them.

1. Check the Usernames. (Please do not badger the Sysops if the username falls under one of these sections. While this can help identify potential spammers, it doesn't mean that they are)
   • Most potential spammers can be discovered just by looking at their username. If said username is unacceptable ("Asdasdasd22" is an example of a username that is unacceptable) then it's likely to be a spammer.
   • Another way to check the username is against the list of MFGG members, both the mainsite and the forums. If the username doesn't show on either of them, it could mean one of two things:
     1. The user is only interested in 'helping' the wiki, and/or is not that interested in joining the forums or the mainsite;
     2. The user is either a double account of an existing user, most likely a banned one, or someone else acting on a banned user's behalf. This is especially clear if the first edits are of banned user's pages.
   • Even if the username matches a current one, you need to take in account the status of that account: How many posts had that user made? And are they currently banned, especially perma-banned? This is important, as one of the previous Sysops, TheJoey, had this policy: "Perma's on the forums, perma'd IN REAL LIFE". True, nowadays the max ban on the forums is normally a year, but the same principle applies: If you are banned on the forums, especially for a long time, then you are banned in real life from the rest of MFGG.
2. Often, a user's first few edits will clearly show what type of user he (or she) is going to be.
   • If the user creates a userpage that isn't a redirect to their MFGG information, then either they don't have a mainsite or forum account, or, especially when they create a page where their MFGG information would be if they were a member of MFGG which contains (almost) exactly the same as the userpage content, they are a spammer. If it's the later, flag the pages up by adding {{Delete}} to the top of the page. A Sysop will get round to checking the page, and will take action if needed.
   • If the user edits the information of a banned member, especial if said member has been perma-banned, then that user is most likely a duplicate account of said banned member or one of his 'friends'. If this happens, you don't need to flag it up: the Sysops pay close attention to these pages, and will take action as needed.
   • If one of the user's first edits is to edit a page so that most, if not all, of the information is removed, it is most likely a spammer who clears information from wikis for the fun of it. If this is the case, UNDO is your friend: it will revert the changes the spammer made. Also, make sure to flag a Sysop up about it, using either their talk page or the edit summary of the undo, or both.

Anyway, that's all I can think of right now. If you have any suggestions or comments, please feel free to leave them on the Talk page.

- Ah2190 05:14, 8 February 2012 (EST)