Banned from the forum message

[DaveB]

Hi Guy's..

We've recently had a couple of instances where users (and I was one.. Hobby is another) have tried to logon to the forum only to receive a message that we've been banned from the forum. The message, in the form of a line on the screen, quotes a website and details of the IP address involved.

What is causing this is software we have active on the forum to check spam users. When anyone reports receiving spam, this information is logged on a central computer along with IP details and our software checks this automatically each time we logon. Now.. although our static IP's remain static, the IP's we're actually 'going live' on change periodically and on the two occassions noted, the IP's have moved into 'blocks' held on the spam database so regardless of if we have been responsible for sending spam or not, the forum software will not allow access.

One option is to turn the software off but recent experience has shown we started getting hit with spam not long after the software was disabled so we're loathe to take this action again. The only other option is for the user to wait until the IP changes again, as it will in reasonably short order.

So.. if you suddenly receive a message when you try to login informing you that you've been banned from the forum, it is not through anything you've done. Those who are being banned by us will know about it well before the message is received ;-) It's a pain in the proverbial I'm afraid but a necessary evil if we're to keep the forum secure.

ATB

DaveB :tab:

[jonesey2k]

My mobile phone's IP has been banned but I'll just wait till I get home to post

[DaveB]

Rgr that Jonesey ;-)

As it happens, Hobby uses the same ISP as me (btinternet) and he contacted them about it last night towit he received a sympathetic response but no action. They basically said what I've put above telling him that his IP will change again soon. Let's hope it changes out of one of those blacklisted blocks and not into another one!

ATB

DaveB :tab:

[hobby]

Let see if my IP has moved on to an acceptable IP address.

[hobby]

Good, pleased to be back in touch with CBFsim forum.

[DaveB]

Glad to have you back Hobby

Wonder how many more of us will get caught in the fullness of time. Makes you wonder when it will all end doesn't it. You can only have so many IP variables (albeit an awful lot) and if these herberts sending spam keep doing so and their IP's are moving all the time AND they're all getting reported.. this is effectively reducing the overall amount of useable IP's :roll:

ATB

DaveB :tab:

[AllanL]

So who's going to be first to tell Dave it's the price of beer in his bar that really got him barred.

[DaveB]

It pains me to say it Allan but we're the cheapest of the 6 places you can drink 'out' in the village/villages (we're only separated from Goring by the Thames). :o

ATB

DaveB :tab:

[SkippyBing]

Was that last post supposed to be ironic?

Oh it's gone already! I'm sure Dave's wasn't supposed to be ironic!

[DaveB]

Ah.. someone noticed Another one of those scumbag spams touting 'gold' this and 'gold' that from our friends at gmail :roll: Almost every single dodgy user we get has a gmail address so I get twitchy with my trigger finger when I see one

Skip.. the user has gone too ;-)

ATB

DaveB :tab: