Managing Spam in WordPress blogs with Akismet (Domain of One's Own)
SPAM. Everyone hates it in their email. If you're new to WordPress and blogging platforms, spam exists in the form of comment spam; people leave comments promoting their services or schemes, on a post or page.
So how do you deal with comment spam when it can come in even more often than email spam? You do not have to delete every comment that comes in. The solution can be found with a plugin called Akismet.
The Setup
- Login into your site's WordPress Dashboard (e.g., [name].sites.pomona.edu/wp-admin).
- Navigate to 'Plugins'. Under the 'Akismet Anti-Spam' listing, click on 'Activate'.
- Click on the 'Set up your Akismet account' button.
- A new page will open to the Akismet website where you can choose from a number of plans. We recommend the 'Get Personal' plan to begin with.
- On the next page, you are asked to make a yearly contribution to the developer. The recommended contribution is $36.
If you agree, click the 'Continue and pay $36' button.
NOTE:
You can adjust the slider down to $0. The smiley face will begin to frown, but at least the service will be free. However, you will be asked to confirm there are no ads, product/services or business promotion on your site. Then, choose 'Continue with personal subscription'.
- Complete the registration and payment information on the next page.
- Once you have completed the registration and payment information, you will be directed to a site the states 'Your purchase has been completed!" You will also see the Akismet API Key number that has been assigned to your site.
You should also receive Akismet confirmation emails, one of which will provide the Akismet API Key number.
NOTE:
API stands for Application Programming Interface, and it's a way for programs and services to 'talk' to each other. The Akismet plugin requires you to get an Akismet API Key, which is simply a 'code' that you supply when activating the plugin.
- Copy your Akismet API Key from the confirmation page or from the confirmation email.
- Go back to your site's WordPress Dashboard. Navigate to 'Plugins'. Under the 'Akismet Anti-Spam' listing, click on 'Settings'.
- On the next page, click on 'Manually enter an API key'.
- Paste your Akismet API Key from the confirmation page or from the confirmation email into the 'Enter your API key' box. Then, click the 'Connect with API key' button.
- If successfully installed, you will see 'Akismet is now protecting your site from spam. Happy blogging!'.