Web server 500 error code

Is 500 the correct code that should be returned to a spammer in the response header as seen in the logs or do I have a problem?

I am using OSSIM to aggregate and monitor security events in my logs and this event is getting reported as “Web server 500 error code (Internal Error)” by OSSIM, but I think it is actually OK and the plugin is working.

I turned on the e-mail spam comment to admin by editing the code in anti-spam.php and from that it seems the plugin is working correctly usually blocking bots as they fill in the field that is supposed to be blank.

I wonder if another response code in the header wouldn’t be more appropriate though. It’s not like the web server is failing to serve a response to the spammer. Is there a way to change the response header in the plugin code or is it driven by WordPress?

The problem is this is creating noise in my security system, though I can probably create a policy to filter it out, I am just wondering what the best solution to the problem is.

Any light you could shed on this would be much appreciated. Thanks!

https://wordpress.org/plugins/anti-spam/