SPAM, Advertising, Etc.
We're constantly battling SPAM, almost on a daily basis, but there just isn't any 100% reliable solution to preventing SPAM. Some will get through, and we'll continue to clean it up. Some days are heavier than others. Many of our spammers are actual humans, which we will never really be able to prevent. I'll be implementing another measure soon to see if it will have any affect on reducing SPAM.
Like most of the "free" Internet, we use the Google advertising network to provide revenue to maintain the site, etc. Google chooses what ads to show on any given page based on the content of the page and the user viewing the page. We have only a high-level of control of what ads will be shown on the site, but we can block individual advertisers if they are advertising something that we don't want on the site. If you see an advertisement that you find offensive, etc. please send an email to [email protected] or use the contact form on the site. I will need the name of the product, company, or web site being advertised (ideally the website the ad is taking you to) in order to review and potentially block the advertisement.
Several have reported being redirected to other sites, etc. when you were trying to go to a ST page. I'm not seeing that behavior on our end, so I need to know what pages are behaving like this so I can investigate.
-Admin
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Huge blow up last night at
Huge blow up last night at dinner . . .this blog on my end has ads covering the blog and when I try to exit out. . .it shuts down my whole Internet . .
FML, I've taken a look at
FML,
I've taken a look at that forum post using multiple browsers and devices and we're not seeing what you describe. Could you send me a screen shot of your browser when that is happening? You can email it to [email protected]. On Windows you hit Alt-PrtSc (print screen) to capture a screen shot of the current application (i.e. your browser window), which saves it to the Windows clipboard. Then you can paste the screenshot in an email using the Ctrl-v (Control + v) keys.
On a Mac it's Command-Shift-4 (Command + Shift + #4 keys) to take a whole screen shot (entire desktop) and it will save the result to your desktop as a PNG (.png) file. Or, you can save the result to the clipboard (similar to above) by using the same key combination but also holding the "control" key as well.
It's possible that a malicious advertiser is injecting some script that is showing advertisements that are escaping their designated boundaries on the site. No advertisement should be covering up any of the content on this site. Unfortunately if this is true than we'll only see it if we see the same advertisement.
-Admin
Any particular one of Draco's
Any particular one of Draco's blogs?
I get redirected to good
I get redirected to good housekeeping or le monde when trying to click on blog titles. It doesn't happen all the time, but when it does, it will be 5-6 times in a row.
Stepintime0111, So you don't
Stepintime0111,
So you don't see an advertisement that is blocking the content of the page? You are just trying to click a link to a blog entry and being redirected to another site?
-Admin
Annith, Where are you sending
Annith,
Where are you sending your notes to me? I don't monitor my private messages on this site since most of them are SPAM as well.
E-mails to [email protected] are best. Also, depending on the wording of your message your messages may have also been tagged as SPAM and not got through to me. Sorry about that.
I'm not sure why you can't change your avatar picture. Do you get any errors when you try to?
I have not seen any messages about offensive advertisements. Email details of the ads to [email protected] and we'll take a look at them and block them if necessary.
Are you still having the redirect problem?
And yes, even though I've added yet another layer of anti-SPAM to the site today, there will always be SPAM that gets through. We just keep cleaning it up. The larger the site gets the more attractive it is do SPAMmers. We believe the Kansas City SPAMmer is a human, and those are the hardest to block. Even though we block them by IP address, they just get a different address.
-Admin
Ah! I may know why, and
Ah! I may know why, and you're probably not the only one it's affecting. Let me look into this.
-Admin
Golly .. Annith ... my icon
Golly .. Annith ... my icon photo changed from my black horse, Paladin, to the Barbie cars w/bunnies. I tried that switch when you first did a shout-out regarding icons. Forgot that I had done it. Silliness
We use something called a
We use something called a Content Distribution Network (CDN) to serve up images from the ST site. Basically, it helps speed up the site a lot. The problem was that the process I have in place to make sure that the CDN is always in sync with the ST site had crashed and I didn't notice it. So, as soon as I fixed the problem your latest avatar photo was uploaded to the CDN.
-Admin
Fixed. -Admin
Fixed.
-Admin
Do you mean using HTML in
Do you mean using HTML in blog posts, forums and comments? If so, it's because doing so would open up a potential security risk for the site. It would make it much more easy for a spammer or hacker to upload malicious content to the site, etc. It's extremely difficult (if not impossible) to prevent malicious content if you allow HTML to be posted to the site.
It's possible that your previous contact emails went to my SPAM folder. I get dozens of those SPAM emails a day, if not many more. Sorry about that.
-Admin
I'll look into it. -Admin
I'll look into it.
-Admin
In contrast, I don't see any
In contrast, I don't see any Ads or pop-ups and have never been redirected. I have Windows 8 and use Adblock Plus, a free add-on on my laptop.
*like* Yes, I highly
*like*
Yes, I highly recommend using at least script blockers like NoScript or ScriptNo (depending on your browser of choice).
Since we depend on revenue from advertisements I won't recommend an ad blocker. But, I understand those who do, and we won't hold it against you.
-Admin
It may. The more information
It may. The more information I have the better.
-Admin
That looks like it was one of
That looks like it was one of the ads on the site. I'll look into it.
If you can, can you go back to the page you were on when it happened and send us a screenshot to [email protected]? Maybe I can tell which ad is causing this to happen (assuming the same ad shows on the page when you return to it).
-Admin
It looks like it is first
It looks like it is first hitting track.securevoluum.com and then rerouting to lemode-mgz.com on my phone.
After a bit of research, and
After a bit of research, and the information you all have provided me, it looks like an advertiser is using the Google ad network to open pop-up ads that user can not see (or some can see and are forced to click on them). This is a violation of Google policy so they will be removed soon.
In the mean time, I've made some adjustments that hopefully have resolved the issue. Please let us know if anyone else is still being redirected to other sites or are seeing advertisements that are covering ST content (pop-ups, etc.).
-Admin
Hi, Just had a redirect keep
Hi,
Just had a redirect keep happening to me. Trying to read Rutherford's most recent blog post about her Sd financial aid. Keeps redirecting me to another site, goodhousekeeping I think. I'm on my ipod if that helps you figure out the cause.
I just had 4 redirects trying
I just had 4 redirects trying to get to the homepage
OK. If the redirects are
OK. If the redirects are still happening, I need to know the *exact* URL that you are being redirected to. If it's possible, having a screenshot of the ST page you were on when the redirect happened would be good as well. You can send screenshots to [email protected].
-Admin