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January 16, 2005
Blogging 101 - Fight Comment Spam
By QBlog in Blogging 101
A past issue of "Blogging 101" addressed some of the pros and cons of enabling comments. Bloggers who decide to allow comments on their blog (with or without restrictions) will probably face the dreaded Internet plague known as "comment spam". Comment spam is similar to email spam (which we're all painfully familiar with) but serves a somewhat different purpose. Email spam is generally designed to attract business (I don't know who it attracts either) while comment spam is designed to improve the Google Rank of a site. Email spam is meant to be viewed by a human, comment spam is meant to be viewed by search engines.
Spotting Comment Spam
Comment spam, like email spam, is pretty easy to spot. It's usually a comment with dozens of links to gambling, financial or porn sites. Sometimes the links are accompanied with a comment like "Nice site" or "I agree with you." Such comments are obviously constructed to make the spam seem legit but the excessive linking gives away the true intent.
How To Fight It?
I could give a list of methods for fighting comment spam but someone else has already done that. Movable Type has posted a "Guide for Fighting Comment Spam" and it's a must read for everyone who enables comments. Even if you don't use Movable Type to power your blog, it provides some valuable tips on how to kill comment spam dead.
The Shortcut
The simple way to effectively end comment spam is by requiring registration. The advantage of registration is that every comment is tied to a specific user account and any account can be disabled if it's found to abuse a blog's comments. The disadvantage is that the casual Web surfer may not want to go through the hassle of registering with a service just to post a comment. Such obstacles may discourage legitimate comments and could stifle valuable discussion.
Why Bother?
Why would anyone bother with comments when it's such a hassle to fight comment spam? That's a good question. My best answer is that one of the things that make blogs unique is their comment capability. Requiring registration seems too much like a forum or bulletin board. Disabling comments makes a blog more like a column and less like a blog. For now, I'm keeping comments enabled here. I may disable comments in older posts (another way to manage comments) but I like being able to facilitate a variety of discussions. I think it makes for a better blog. You may disagree but that' just how I see things.
Fight the good fight. Comment Spam Must Die!
Blogging 101 publishes every Sunday. Past issues can be found under the "Blogging 101" heading on the Archives page.