Dougal Campbell's geek ramblings

There’s a new plugin for MovableType called SpamLookup. Let’s compare this add-on to the anti-spam features already in the WordPress core:

Feature Comparison for MT SpamLookup Plugin vs. WordPress Core

Feature	SpamLookup Plugin	WordPress Core
IP-based lookup	Yes	No
Domain-based lookup	Yes	No
TrackBack IP check *	Yes	No
Passphrase checks	Yes	No
Checking HTTP Headers	Yes	No
Hyperlink Count limits	Yes	Yes
Dynamic proxy checking	Yes	Yes
Wordlists (blacklist/graylist)	Yes	Yes
Whitelist URL checks	No	Yes
Whitelist Author checks	No	Yes

* I have concerns about using this method for spam detection. There are many legitimate circumstances that will fail this test.

And of course, there are plugins for WordPress which fill in the gaps. I’d say that for MT users, this should be an excellent tool to add to your arsenal of anti-spam measures. WP users wishing to add more anti-spam features have plenty of options available.

Personally, I find that between the blacklist/graylist and the open proxy checks, WordPress catches most of the spam on its own. I’m using a couple of homegrown plugins, but don’t have so much to do with detecting spam, as with how to handle it once it’s been detected.