Title: Junky subscribers
Last modified: April 20, 2024

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# Junky subscribers

 *  [trbhicks](https://wordpress.org/support/users/trbhicks/)
 * (@trbhicks)
 * [2 years, 1 month ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/junky-subscribers/)
 * I’m getting odd entries in my subscribe form. 
   They are of the form [mattt.en.l.ys.hl.ub.e.l.y@gmail.com](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/junky-subscribers/mattt.en.l.ys.hl.ub.e.l.y@gmail.com?output_format=md)
   Most of them don’t respond to the confirmation email, but a couple have. What’s
   up, and is there a way to stop them?
 * I’d love a filter for “more than one period before the @” or something
 * The page I need help with: _[[log in](https://login.wordpress.org/?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fwordpress.org%2Fsupport%2Ftopic%2Fjunky-subscribers%2F%3Foutput_format%3Dmd&locale=en_US)
   to see the link]_

Viewing 1 replies (of 1 total)

 *  Plugin Support [Ojoma a11n](https://wordpress.org/support/users/geraltrivia/)
 * (@geraltrivia)
 * [2 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/junky-subscribers/#post-17720057)
 * Hello there [@trbhicks](https://wordpress.org/support/users/trbhicks/) ,
 * Thank you for reaching out with your concerns about the irregular subscriber 
   entries you’ve been receiving. It seems that your subscription form may have 
   caught the attention of a spam bot. These bots are known for automatically filling
   out forms with random and often nonsensical email addresses, like the ones you’ve
   described.
 * What you’re experiencing is not uncommon, and, fortunately, there are steps you
   can take to mitigate this:Implement CAPTCHA
 * The first and most effective measure would be to add a CAPTCHA to your subscription
   forms. CAPTCHA challenges are designed to distinguish human input from bot activity.
   Adding this to your forms should significantly reduce the number of spam subscriptions.
   For instructions on how to add CAPTCHA to MailPoet forms, please consult our 
   knowledge base article here:
 * [Add CAPTCHA to MailPoet Subscription Forms](https://kb.mailpoet.com/article/182-add-captcha-to-the-mailpoet-subscription-forms)
 * Additionally, you should protect all entry points, including contact forms, comment
   sections, and registration forms. Resources like the following can guide you 
   in strengthening these forms against bots:
    - WPBeginner’s guide on CAPTCHA: [How to Add CAPTCHA in WordPress Login and Registration Form](https://www.wpbeginner.com/plugins/how-to-add-captcha-in-wordpress-login-and-registration-form/)
    - WordPress Plugin Directory for CAPTCHA: [Advanced noCaptcha & invisible Captcha](https://wordpress.org/plugins/advanced-nocaptcha-recaptcha/)
 * Refine Registration Settings:
 * Another angle to tackle this issue is to tweak registration settings. You mentioned
   wanting a filter; while MailPoet doesn’t provide this specific filter feature,
   you can control random registrations differently:
    1. For WordPress:
       Disable “Anyone can register” in the ‘Membership’ setting under
       _Settings > General_.
    2. For WooCommerce:
       Uncheck ‘Allow customers to create an account on the “My account”
       page’ under _WooCommerce > Settings > Accounts & Privacy_.
 * This way, you can limit account creation to only during the checkout process,
   which can deter spambots that target registration pages.
 * I hope this helps.

Viewing 1 replies (of 1 total)

The topic ‘Junky subscribers’ is closed to new replies.

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 * 1 reply
 * 2 participants
 * Last reply from: [Ojoma a11n](https://wordpress.org/support/users/geraltrivia/)
 * Last activity: [2 years ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/junky-subscribers/#post-17720057)
 * Status: not resolved