Zapped two more spambots in the last two hours

[james_davis_nicoll]

Are there a lot of them suddenly or am I being targeted?

Comments

[tx-cronopio.livejournal.com]

You're apparently good with the zapping. Can you zap my sister in law?

[thesaucernews.livejournal.com]

The answer in both cases is probably and simultaneously 'yes.'

[synabetic.livejournal.com]

I had three of them today. It seems I cannot determine their purpose... but it's looking like they found my lj due to the content I was posting (in this case the post concerning the director of the new Captain America film).

But yeah, I'd like to know where it is they come from. The bastards.

[avram]

I'm seeing more email spam the last two or three days, but no LJ comment spam in quite a while.

[lpetrazickis.livejournal.com]

Lull in spambottery for me.

[lpetrazickis.livejournal.com]

From the previous pattern, I think the locus is around your recent addition of john_rastelli. Those who've accepted his friend request have also accepted friend requests from midge_eike. I suspected some others, but they look like false positives on my part.

Keeping john_rastelli or any other spambot as a friend makes you as a target.

I'm using the old TouchGraph LJ Browser for some of this diagnosis.

[james-nicoll.livejournal.com]

Must have been midge_eike because I had not friended john_rastelli.

[mishalak.livejournal.com]

My journal isn't targeted. It could be because I hardly post anymore or because not allowing anonymous commentators is a big ol' "Go Away" sign.

[le-trombone.livejournal.com]

I have a fairly open journal, but have not been targeted. I suspect just the sheer number of postings and friends have made you a target, while us relatively friendless types are ignored.

[pecunium.livejournal.com]

What sorts of spambotting? I've gotten about half a dozen to a comment about being charged by a tortoise. The commenter is legit, but the replies to her are bizzare.

Delete, ban and report.

[james-nicoll.livejournal.com]

Almost plausible looking sentences in older posts, but if you look at the originating account, there's one computer-generated nonsense entry. I don't know what they get out of it.

[pecunium.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that's what I'm getting too. Happend about six months ago, and is recurring now.

I suspect there are some google links in there, just as with comment spam to other sorts of blogs.

[mjlayman.livejournal.com]

A lot more people read your blog than most.

[pecunium.livejournal.com]

I finally froze the offending comment. In a couple of weeks I'll (with luck) remember to unfreeze it, and see if any more spam lands on it.