What is Comment Spam?
Simply put, comment spam refers to irrelevant or unsolicited comments left on blogs, websites, or social media platforms. The main goal of these comments is to promote a particular website, product, or service, usually through the inclusion of a link. Comment spam often appears as random text, fake praise, or irrelevant information that adds no value to the conversation. Most of the time, comment spam is generated automatically by bots, although some are posted manually. These bots crawl through the web, looking for websites with open comment sections where they can drop their spam.
Why Do People Use Comment Spam?
You might wonder why anyone would bother posting these irrelevant blog comments. The answer is simple: search engine optimization (SEO). When someone leaves a comment on your site that includes a link, it creates a backlink to their website.
However, when spammers use comment spam to gain backlinks, it is considered a black hat SEO technique. While spam comments might seem like a harmless nuisance, they can negatively impact your SEO, decrease your website’s credibility, and harm your visitors’ experience.
Types of Comment Spam
Not all comment spam looks the same. Some are easy to spot, while others are trickier. Below are the most common types of comment spam you might encounter on your website:
Obvious Advertisement Spam
These comments promote a specific product or service that has no relation to your post. For instance, if you have a blog post about healthy recipes, a spam comment might promote “cheap sunglasses” or “investment opportunities.”
Suspicious Links
Spam comments often include a hyperlink that directs readers to an unrelated website. These links may lead to malicious sites, phishing attempts, or websites selling questionable products.
Fake Praise
Spammers sometimes use fake compliments to try and make their comments look legitimate. These might say something like, “Great post, really enjoyed reading it!” followed by a link to their website.
Keyword Stuffing
Some spammers will leave comments filled with unrelated keywords in an attempt to boost their site’s SEO ranking. These comments are usually packed with gibberish and don’t add value to the conversation.
Comments That Don’t Make Sense
Some spam comments are automatically generated and don’t even attempt to make sense. They might be a random string of words or phrases that have no connection to your blog post.
How to Identify Comment Spam
Now that you know the types of comment spam, you might be wondering how to identify it. Some spam is easy to spot, while others may seem more subtle.
Here are some ways to recognize whether a comment is spam:
- The Comment is Irrelevant to the Post: If the comment doesn’t relate to your content in any way, it’s likely spam. For example, a comment about “weight loss pills” on a blog post about web development should raise red flags.
- The Commenter’s Name is Suspicious: If the commenter’s name is something like “bestdealsnow” or “cheapmeds,” you can be pretty sure it’s spam. Real users typically use their actual names or usernames.
- The Email Address Looks Fake: Some comments come from email addresses that don’t look legitimate. If you see something like “[email protected],” it’s probably spam. Real users are more likely to use a professional or personal email address.
- The Comment Contains a Suspicious Link: Most spam comments include links that don’t seem trustworthy. You can hover over the link without clicking to see the URL. If it looks suspicious, it’s better to delete the comment rather than take any risks.
- Generic Comment That Could Be About Anything: Comments like “Great post!” or “I found this really helpful” could be genuine, but they might also be spam, especially if there’s no specific reference to your content. If you see these comments along with a link, it’s likely spam.
- The Comment is Poorly Written: Watch out for comments with lots of grammar or spelling mistakes. While some people might make mistakes, spam comments often have glaring errors that make them easy to spot.
Why is Comment Spam Bad?
Now that you know what comment spam looks like, you might wonder why it’s such a big deal. Comment spam can cause several problems for your website, such as:
- Hurts Your SEO: Search engines like Google take note of spammy links on your website. If your comments section is full of these bad links, it can lower your site’s ranking in search results, making it harder for people to find you online.
- Damages Your Website’s Reputation: When visitors see spam comments on your blog, they might think you don’t care about maintaining your site, leading to a negative impression of your website on the blogging network.
- Increases Security Risks: Spam comments often include links to harmful websites. If one of your visitors clicks on a spam link, they could end up on a site that tries to steal their information or infect their computer with malware.
- Clutters Your Comments Section: A comment section filled with spam is unpleasant for real users. Genuine visitors may be discouraged from leaving comments if they see your blog is overrun with spam.
- Wastes Your Time: Dealing with comment spam can be time-consuming. You’ll have to spend valuable time moderating and allowing comments to filter out spam, which could be better spent growing your blog or business.
How to Prevent Comment Spam?
Allowing comments on blog posts encourages readers to engage, but it also attracts comment spammers. To combat blog spam, it’s essential to implement security measures like malware scanning. You can maintain a clean comment section and protect your site from the dangers of blog spam by taking the following steps:
Use an Anti-Spam Plugin
If you’re using WordPress or another blog platform, you can install an anti-spam plugin like Akismet or Jetpack. These tools automatically filter out spam comments and prevent them from appearing on your site.
Enable Comment Moderation
Most blog platforms allow you to moderate comments before they go live. This means you can manually approve or reject each comment. While this takes time, it ensures that only genuine comments make it onto your blog.
Block Comments with Specific Keywords
You can block those keywords if you notice that spam comments often contain certain words or phrases. Most blog platforms allow you to create a list of blocked words, and any comment containing those words will be automatically flagged as spam.
Disable Comments on Older Posts
Spam bots often target older blog posts that are less frequently monitored. You can reduce spam by disabling comments on posts that are more than a few months old.
Limit Links in Comments
Limiting the number of links a commenter can include in their comment can prevent spam. Spammers often try to post multiple links, so setting a limit can reduce the amount of spam.
Use a Comment Blacklist
Some blog platforms allow you to create a blacklist of specific email addresses, IP addresses, or URLs. Any comment that comes from a blacklisted source will be automatically blocked.
If your blog is already overrun with spam comments, don’t worry; you can clean it up. Here’s how:
- Bulk Delete Spam Comments: Many blog platforms allow you to bulk-delete spam comments. You can select multiple comments at once and remove them in one go.
- Use a Spam Filter: Install a spam filter like Akismet to automatically detect and delete spam comments. These tools work in the background to keep your comment section clean.
- Mark Comments as Spam: If you come across a spam comment, mark it as spam instead of just deleting it. This helps your anti-spam plugin learn what spam looks like so it can block similar comments in the future.
Conclusion
Comment spam can hurt your SEO, damage your website’s reputation, and expose your visitors to security risks. You can maintain a clean, engaging comment section that adds value to your blog by understanding what comment spam is and how to prevent it. Use anti-spam tools, moderate your comments, and take proactive steps to block spam before it reaches your site. With these strategies in place, you can focus on growing your blog and engaging with genuine visitors without the distraction of spam comments.