Spam has its plus points

One of the side effects of blog comment spam is when you get such a torrent of stuff all pitching the same thing, you can end up getting an education.

The majority of comment spam I’ve been getting in this blog recently – all trapped by Akismet – is to do with phentermine. No, not viagra: that’s so 2005.

I had no idea what phentermine was. I didn’t even wish to know what it was. But after reviewing the nth comment spam in the Akismet zapped list, I decided to look it up:

Phentermine is a phenethylamine primary used as an appetite suppressant. It is typically prescribed for individuals who are at increased medical risk because of their weight, as opposed to cosmetic weight loss.

Well, I’m glad to know that.

Things are moving on, though. The majority of comment spam this weekend (and there has been an extraordinary high volume of it, 40 or so just today, again all trapped by Aksimet) is to do with sudoku and how to win big.

Ah, that one I know already!

Neville Hobson

Social Strategist, Communicator, Writer, and Podcaster with a curiosity for tech and how people use it. Believer in an Internet for everyone. Early adopter (and leaver) and experimenter with social media. Occasional test pilot of shiny new objects. Avid tea drinker.

  1. Spam blitz has Akismet struggling at NevilleHobson.com

    […] What’s a bit alarming is that around five percent of that number wasn’t trapped by Akismet but appeared in the comment moderation queue so requiring manual intervention. Yet all are clearly spam, offering the usual menu of phentermine, sex aids, other dodgy deals (but no soduko today) and inane comments like “Great website! Bookmarked! I am impressed at your work!” The vast majority of links in the spams are to domains ending in .pl (that’s Poland). […]

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