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We recently upgraded all of our client websites to WordPress 3.3. Most of the WordPress core upgrades deal with security and bug fixes, and our clients do not need to be … [Read More]
NextGEN Gallery is a very popular image gallery plugin for WordPress that makes it easier to manage and organize your images. We recommend it for use on any site where you … [Read More]
Regardless of what kind of website you have, you need to make sure you have proper backup and security procedures in place. And if you are using any kind of software, such as … [Read More]
Dropbox isn't just for backups. You can use it to share files, transfer files between computers, and host website files externally. Dropbox is an easy-to-use, cloud-based … [Read More]
Social media buttons are becoming increasingly common on websites. There are many social media button plugins out there, but the Socialize plugin is by far our favorite. While … [Read More]
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Akismet Plugin Review
If you allow your visitors to post comments on your WordPress website, you should be using Akismet. This plugin identifies spam comments with remarkable accuracy, much like a junk mail filter for your email. Don’t think you’re going to get much spam on your website? You’re in for a big surprise. Unless you’re blocking the search engines from finding your website, you will get a lot of seemingly random traffic and spam comments, the vast majority of which come from automated programs. Over time, you will get more and more of it. But if you’re using Akismet, you won’t have to waste much time sorting through spam comments.
You will need to sign up for an Akismet API key at https://akismet.com/signup/. It can be free if you choose the “Personal site” option (they don’t check). But if you are getting a lot of traffic to your website, you should consider one of the paid options to improve Akismet’s performance on your website. After you sign up, you just need to activate the Akismet plugin and add your API key. There are a couple of configuration options, but most users can just leave the settings as they are. Akismet also keeps track of a number of statistics, such as how much spam it’s caught, legitimate comments, spam it’s missed, and false positives.
If you don’t want anyone to post comments on your website, it’s best to simply switch them off in the Settings > Discussion menu. You could also change various settings to improve the quality and administration of comments on your website. For example, you could choose to only allow registered users to comment, automatically allow a comment to be posted if you’ve approved a previous comment by that author, and you could set up spam filters that are triggered by specific keywords or IP addresses.
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