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A Fix to block GMail Spammers... PERIOD! (/thread-13418.html)A Fix to block GMail Spammers... PERIOD! - DerVVulfman - 02-17-2026
Dear Friends,
One of the most recognized and accepted eMail services in use today is GMail. This mailbox service owned by Alphabet, Inc. is by far the largest worldwide with nearly two billion users. But of legitimate eMail services, it is also the service most used by spam.
Googlemail aka GMail has always permitted the use of periods in their eMail addresses since it first dawned in 2004. While Google Support may make claim that it does not ignore periods, nearly every other search reports otherwise. And since 2024, malicious activity went on the rise with GMail as spammers and the like found they can bypass GMail's own Spam Filter by applying periods within their own address.
Indeed. For the unaware, the eMail addresses of JohnDoe@GMail.Com, John.Doe@GMail.com and J.o.h.NDOE@GMail.com are all one-and-the-same. And those employed to deliver spam and need a fixed address are now using GMail because of the address flexibility which unfortunately has the side effect of being able to bypass spam filters.
But it is not only GMail's spam filter, some anti-spam software services and most all bulletin-board softwares (forum, wordpress and the like) which are just as prone and vulnerable. Initially, Save-Point too being vulnerable to those bypassing eMail anti-spam protections...
... until now. ^_^
Early this week, I instituted a 'ban' on the use of periods within gMail addresses, and it was actually a comically easy procedure to employ. This means that no one can create an account with a google eMail account that contains a period within their address. Neither Steve.Irwin@GMail.Com nor Robert.Downey.Jr@GoogleMail.com would be able to make an account unless they provided their addresses clean and without the fore-mentioned periods.
As of this week, I am fully aware that a spammer did get blocked when attempting to create an account with such an address. I was comically checking the system when the attempt was made and laughed when I saw both it and the spammer's ridiculously high-Spammy IP address. However, I am also aware the gMail accounts are themselves not banned as a new member joined LITERALLY TODAY.
Again, this is not a ban upon eMails coming from Google's service, but only the use of the extra, arbitrary, and useless periods they permit in their address.
Thank you.
The Resident Werewolf
RE: A Fix to block GMail Spammers... PERIOD! - Remi-chan - 02-17-2026
Very nice! That should stem the flood a good bit!
RE: A Fix to block GMail Spammers... PERIOD! - Ace_V - 02-17-2026
Thanks for that, DerVVulfman. Seeing old threads getting bumped along with my spirits as I look forward to more content only to see spam was (is) a bummer.
RE: A Fix to block GMail Spammers... PERIOD! - Remi-chan - 02-18-2026
Atleast when my threads get bumped, it's usually because i have more content.
Outside of DoubleX in the music thread, I'm basically the only one who posts more than once a month in the entire creativity section. I remember Eric Matyas used to post a bunch but I think he retired. Have'nt seen him anywhere and he used to be basically omnipresent in the music and sound threads..
For some reason, despite having some of the most viewed threads in certain forums, the spambots don't seem game to post in mine, lmao!
I guess my aura is just too strong! or maybe they think that Chaos Goddess (peep the group image) makes me a member of the staff or something, haha.
Fools. My power is frail, my voice is what they fear.
RE: A Fix to block GMail Spammers... PERIOD! - DerVVulfman - 02-18-2026
The Creativity Section is not able to be viewed by guests, but registered accounts only. Even the 'newcomer' accounts cannot view it, so even the bot accounts that sign up don't have access before I find and ban them.
That's why they don't touch ya. But that's also credit for our two-step process:
Step 1: Sign up properly
Step 2: Make an intoduction post 'with actual content and no spam' as part of the No-Bot protocol
Step 3: Roughly 15 minutes later--- you go from Newbie to fully "Registered'
RE: A Fix to block GMail Spammers... PERIOD! - StrangeAutomaton - 03-15-2026
um, you won't block all gmail spammers that way, they still have a way of making unlimited unique email addresses. Gmail allows filters to be added to the username so you can sort your mail easier and see who is selling your info... for instance, example+AMZN@gmail.com to signify you used that email with amazon ( it can really be anything ). Any emails sent to that address will be received at example@gmail.com. So you need to add a restriction of using + in email addresses as well or results will be for nothing as spammers figure this out.
RE: A Fix to block GMail Spammers... PERIOD! - DerVVulfman - 03-16-2026
Well, as I stated, the use of the periods within eMail addresses have been a plague with anti-spam filters, this even reported within Google's own spam filter service. There is nothing I can do about spammers creating alternate eMails.
However, it does prevent those from using said period-using techniques (and it is working), and the eMail checks of spambots that have appeared showed they do use the same eMail addresses and tend to become blacklisted. Prior to the fix, the checks had to be run manually after removing the periods.
However, the technique in gMail's filter system is helpful.
RE: A Fix to block GMail Spammers... PERIOD! - StrangeAutomaton - 03-19-2026
the + in emails does not create an alternate email, it's the same as putting dots in your email, but more flexible, so if you filter out emails with +'s in them as well, you will prevent another avenue for attack.
RE: A Fix to block GMail Spammers... PERIOD! - StrangeAutomaton - 03-19-2026
Regardless, I added a filter to block spammers from using gmail filters in their emails to prevent multiple account registrations under a single email address. The filter is *+*@gmail.com