Spambots

[Wowbagger]

We are under siege.

April Fool?

[Zeke]

I know, it's a problem. I'm behind on security patches for the forum. I need to renew the license, and since moving back to Ottawa, I just haven't had any money. I'll take care of it as soon as I can.

[Nate the Great]

Time for Hackneyed Joke #4571:

What is this mythical substance you call "money?"

:)

[PointyHairedJedi]

I'm eating them as fast as I can, dammit! It would be easier if there were a few brainbots as well for variety, but sadly it looks like I'm going to have to go somewhere else for those.

Mmmm, brains.

Also, I'm willing to chip in on the licence like last time, Zekey. These things always cost an arm and a brain, I know.

[Nate the Great]

I hope you put enough salt on those PHJ. I hear it enhances the flavor.

[Chancellor Valium]

Salt? Salt? Bah! Salt is for dullards! No, a true connoisseur eats their spambots marinated in a caraway sauce.

[PointyHairedJedi]

Fritters.

Yeah, you heard me.

[Zeke]

Good news: there's good news! I got that license renewed thanks to a timely assist from PHJ. Antony will be patching the forum on Saturday; he says there's a new anti-spam system he's sure will work.

[PointyHairedJedi]

It's official - I own Zeke's soul. Go me!

[Wowbagger]

(1) Spazzing awesome.
(2) Do I read my timecodes wrong, or was PHJ making brain jokes the day before ZZ5MV went live? Can PHJ travel through time?
(3) How cool is it that the Sci-Fi channel went ahead and bought the first series of The Sarah Jane Adventures for our delighted consumption?

[mudshark]

(2) Do I read my timecodes wrong, or was PHJ making brain jokes the day before ZZ5MV went live? Can PHJ travel through time?

I wouldn't rule it out.

Any of it.

There's another one, btw. Make it suffer.

[Chancellor Valium]

Can't believe I missed this before, but:

Mmmm, brains.


Brain and brain - what is brain?

[PointyHairedJedi]

Brain and brain - what is brain?
It's like a party in my mouth and everybody's invited?

[Zeke]

I'm really surprised PHJ hasn't pointed this out, but...

(2) Do I read my timecodes wrong, or was PHJ making brain jokes the day before ZZ5MV went live?

No, ZZ5M.net went live late on April 1. I was just really slow with the newspost.

[PointyHairedJedi]

I'm really surprised PHJ hasn't pointed this out, but...
I was too busy time-travelling, duh.

[Zeke]

I just deleted about a hundred spambots, but we can probably expect more. Antony is working on the problem (they're having it at Trek BBS and Talk CSI too). In the meantime, I think I'm going to switch to manual confirmation of new members. It's a hassle for real people -- and yes, we do get one now and then -- but it should keep the bots from actually posting. I for one am sick of those same damn two pictures. Where's the variety?

ETA: Huh! I just noticed that our CAPTCHA system isn't actually turned on. I'll try that first and see how many bots still get through.

[whoiam]

Spammers have actually come up with an effective means of bypassing CAPTCHA systems now: Paying people in poorer nations the equivalent of a few pence a time to decode them. Probably more cost effective than working out an automated CAPTCHA cracker system. Yay technology, hm?

Thankfully, we're probably not a large enough target for them to spend actual money on.

[PointyHairedJedi]

Well I wish I'd known that before I did. :p

[Chancellor Valium]

Don't be too proud of this humanistic horror you've uncovered. The power to decode the CAPTCHA is nothing compared to the power of open source.

[PointyHairedJedi]

My collar... is feeling awfully tight all of a sudden.



It wouldn't be quite so strange if I was actually wearing a shirt!