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How to Stop WordPress Spam Comments

When running a blog, the interaction with the readers is equally important as the proper strategy on how to stop WordPress spam comments. Plugins are probably the first method that crosses your mind as a powerful way to control comment spam. But, that’s only one option. Thanks to WordPress practical, easy-to-use features and anti-spam functionalities, there are numerous possibilities that will help you run a spam-free site. Another option that crosses our mind is to stop showing a comment section on your site. That means that users can’t leave comments at all.

So, worry no more and use these simple tricks to keep spam comments far away from your blog posts without installing a plugin.

Turn Off Anonymous Comments

After you publish the post, the feedback you get through comments on your blog may be of special importance to you. But sometimes, spammers can spoil the magic and give you a real headache. The solution? Require your commentators to fill out their name and e-mail when leaving a comment. Your blog’s true fans won’t mind filling this info since they want the real interaction with you, which is not the case with the lazy spammers. So, go to the Settings and look for the Discussion option.

Comments Settings

Find the Discussion box and click on it. Now select the field which implies that comment author must fill out name and email.

Comment author must fill out name and email

Scroll down and save your changes. You’re now one step closer to a spam-free website.

Save comment changes

Allow Comments Only From Registered Users

Another effective way to prevent spam comments on your website is to require users to log in before commenting. This method might decrease the number of legit comments as well but it is still a mighty weapon against the automated spam scripts. So, why don’t you give it a try? Go to the Settings and find the Discussion field.

Comments Settings

Check this box and make it mandatory for users to register or log in if they want to leave the comment.

Register or log in if they want to leave the comment

Scroll down and save your changes.

Disable Comments on Older Posts

You’ve been running a blog for a while now, and as the time passes there are more and more spam comments on your older posts. What to do about it? Just close comments on posts older than 90 days. This is an ideal option for the posts that do well and have a good page rank as they may be a perfect target for spammers. Go to the Settings and find the Discussion.

Comments Settings

Choose the number of days after which commenting will be disabled and check this box.

WordPress Spam Comments

In the end, scroll down and save your changes. Enjoy your spam-free blog!

Disable Comments Altogether

This is one of the easiest ways to deal with the WordPress spam comments. If your blog doesn’t depend on the comments or you don’t want them on your website, simply disable comments altogether.

Comments Settings

Uncheck the “Allow people to post comments on new articles” option, which is located under Settings > Discussion.

Uncheck the option

When you finish, scroll down and save the changes to enjoy a website without spam comments.

Disable Trackbacks

Trackbacks make the big part of comment spam so sometimes is necessary to disable trackbacks on your blog or in an individual post. Visit the Settings and click on Discussion.

Comments Settings

Uncheck this box. This will turn off trackbacks for your entire site.

Turn off trackbacks for your entire site

Scroll down and save your changes.

You can also enable/disable comments and trackbacks on each post individually. First, go to your posts.

All Posts

Choose the post for which you wish to change settings and click Edit.

Edit your post

Now, click on the Screen options card.

Page screen options

After this check Discussions box.

Check discussion option

Here you can choose whether to allow comments or to allow trackbacks and pingbacks. Update the post and save the changes.

Discussion box

Manually Approve Every Comment

If your blog for some reason receives only a few comments, this method for stopping WordPress spam comments may be the right choice. An administrator has to approve a comment before it appears on the blog. Simple as that.

Comments Settings

After you go to the Settings and click on Discussion, check this box.

Comment must be manually approved

Scroll down and save your changes.

Add Specific Words, URLs and IP Addresses to Hold Comments on Moderation

Another effective way to stop WordPress spam comments is to build a list of words, names, URLs, IPs, etc, that will be held for moderation if noticed in the comment. All of the above options can be found in your Dashboard under SettingsDiscussion.

Comments Settings

Type words, URLs, IP addresses in this box. The comments which include these elements will be held for moderation.

Comment moderation

Finally, scroll down and save your changes.

Use Plugins Comment Spam Plugins

If none of these options work for you, try using a WordPress comment spam plugins. Most of them are completely free and easy to use. Find the one that works for you and share your knowledge on how to stop WordPress spam comments with others!

We hope this article was helpful. If you liked it, feel free to check out some of these articles as well!

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