talkmagic.co.uk

...Don't.

Guys, every time someone posts a response to these idiots, it brings their thread to the top of the page. Which is exactly what they want. I know it's sometimes hard to resist posting a sarcastic reply, but we're all better off ignoring them. The best thing to do is PM a mod and hopefully the offending thread will be sinned and binned forthwith.

good point, there. Oh but they are a dreadful pest aren't they? Wouldn't you just love to grab them by their virtual knackers (I meant virtual as in the computer sense not virtual as in they haven't got any real ones, although that may or may not be the case too) and suspend them from some very high virtual place

We know that Mandrake can change people's usernames, so why not do this to the spammers as soon as they are identified. SPAMSCUM1 might be a good suggestion. Then everyone knows what to ignore.

And you're right that replying to them in any form is counter productive.

A timely reminder, Replicant.

also, it makes it harder for the mods to find the guilty threads, cos if the last response is by a "ahem" LONG STANDING MEMBER (for all you innuendo fans) - then im sure they'll probably think its a standard thread...

shame they can't give the "ban" ability to a couple of trusted elder posters...

Agreed, I have taken the more proactive approach and reported them directly to both their domain name providers (www.co.cc) and to their hosting providers (www.limestonenetworks.com) because by spamming and hosting illegal materials they are violating the terms of service on both.

It may be no harm if any of you can do the same, or even more importantly get the owners of any of the material that they are hosting to email the abuse departments of the relevant companies.

That's a fair point. I had not thought of that. I'll save my sarcasm for legit posters.

awwwwwwwww but I love posting random sarcastic c*** (not the best) at these people. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside

TheStoner wrote: SPAMSCUM1

... Can be read two ways...

Excellent advice all round. Replies make it more difficult to moderate and, as in the case of this evening, I've had to delete entire threads. Thanks to all of you for your support, please report these events to the service providers or whoever can take action outside TM.

I can change usernames but it's better to add them, their e-mail address, their specific and general IP addresses. Eventually they'll run out of steam and move on. If any TM member is also registered at 'that' site, perhaps you could make the point that their multiple posts this evening haven't done them or their site any favours, quite the reverse.

Ian McCarthy wrote:Agreed, I have taken the more proactive approach and reported them directly to both their domain name providers (www.co.cc) and to their hosting providers (www.limestonenetworks.com) because by spamming and hosting illegal materials they are violating the terms of service on both.

I doubt that will acheive anything. The dot CC top-level domain is apparently (according to Wiki) "The Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands, also called Cocos Islands and Keeling Islands". The reason people register sites in obscure places like that is exactly because the country, or territory, is pretty much immune to legal threats, and will never respond anyway. They could have every single magic DVD ever made on there for direct streaming and nobody could touch it.

queen of clubs wrote:

Ian McCarthy wrote:Agreed, I have taken the more proactive approach and reported them directly to both their domain name providers (www.co.cc) and to their hosting providers (www.limestonenetworks.com) because by spamming and hosting illegal materials they are violating the terms of service on both.

I doubt that will acheive anything. The dot CC top-level domain is apparently (according to Wiki) "The Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands, also called Cocos Islands and Keeling Islands". The reason people register sites in obscure places like that is exactly because the country, or territory, is pretty much immune to legal threats, and will never respond anyway. They could have every single magic DVD ever made on there for direct streaming and nobody could touch it.

No harm anyway. And they host the site in the US anyway. Should a copywrite holder complain, they will have to respond to a DMCA takedown notice.

Reporting to the user's ISP is always worthwhile doing, I expect most do read all spam reports, and some even take action

As for filesharing... I guess we'll see what happens in the Pirate Bay case that's currently going on

kolm wrote:Reporting to the user's ISP is always worthwhile doing, I expect most do read all spam reports, and some even take action

As for filesharing... I guess we'll see what happens in the Pirate Bay case that's currently going on

I did not look at the forum these guys are spamming, but is it torrents or actual rips etc they are hosting?

It differs from TPB in a number of ways. TPB is hosted and run from sweden, this site is hosted in the US. TPB is hosting torrents (Think of them like directions or an address book), it is not actually hosting or dealing in any illegal files. It does enable piracy, but does not strictly participate in it. The court case is trying to decide, under SWEDISH law, if it's ok or not. It's already illegal under US law (afaik).

I watched the prat in question try to flood the board last night with his nonsense, and saw incensed people try to hit back by responding. I think I've mentioned this before, but I've identified a psychological condition I call Neuter Moron Disease, which I believe makes people hit reply in response to provocative situations like that. Spammers still rely on inducing this condition by getting you to respond angrily or even to hit the unsubscribe button in their odious emails. The real reason for spamming you is often simply to get you to reply, thereby collecting active addresses to sell on.

Anyway, here's how you cure Neuter Moron Disease. I know it's hard to remember, but the very best way of dealing with ANY kind of time-wasting moron trying to get a reaction online is to publicly ignore them completely. By all means beaver away in the background doing what's necessary, PMing mods, spilling the beans, etc., but if there's no public response, you effectively and very publicly neuter the time-wasting moron's ability to get such a response, which is far more satisfying in the long run. This works with all kinds of online response seekers.