spam

Since a few days I get about one new follower every day - spam everytime - but I have to log in and actively block the account.

I wish I could set a preference that let's me confirm followers beforehand instead of afterwards or only allow followers of my followers to follow me.... something like that

I’m getting annoyed

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mdoeff replied on April 18, 2008 20:12

I'd like to see a new account setting that is a more flexible version of the Protected account, which is way too rigid (The Protected setting currently requires that you follow everyone that you approve).

For example, I'd like to be able to allow new followers that meet some criteria, such as:

Following < (100, 500, 1000, 5000, etc.)

Following:Followers ratio < (2, 3, 4, 5, etc.)

Disallow follow based on certain keywords in their profile
(allows you to specify terms like viagra, insurance, sex, etc.)

Language = (allows you to select one or more languages)

On Twitter for at least (1 week, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, etc.)

I'm sure that there are other criteria like % of tweets that are @ replies (too noisy), % of tweets that include a URL, etc.

If a new follower tries to follow you and they fail at least one of the criteria, those should be listed on some page just in case something fell through the cracks. From that page you can clear them out or 'Allow Follow'. In other words this would be like the Spam folder on your email.

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brianpeiris replied on May 03, 2008 23:14

I'm a new twitter user and I might agree with mdoeff's points if I were a 'power twitterer' but I think a simple solution would be to start policing some of the obvious spam accounts. e.g. http://twitter.com/johnnyCA is just a spam orgy right now!

I’m starting to get concerned

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scottwblack replied on May 18, 2008 15:51

I'm getting one new spam follower a day and never receive notification emails. I could protect my account, but I don't want to follow *every single person* who follows me. Why can't there be a simple "confirm" feature on the open account like on all the social networking sites? Seems to me that it would be easy to implement, but what do I know?

I’m frustrated

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n2teaching replied on June 11, 2008 00:17

The most serious thing about this problem is that even if I block these spammers and pornographers, I still have to sort through their icons. When I block someone, I should benefit by not seeing their icon anymore. It is disturbing!

I’m concerned that no one is listening.

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xaotica replied on July 07, 2008 18:40

i too am completely sick of twitterspam to the point where it's nearly making me want to stop using the service. hundreds of "people" add me to their list, but nearly all of them are advertising a product or service.

i love mdoeff's suggestions. i'd love to be able to have a moderation queue where people who are following over 1,000 people would be required to enter some information about me to continue submitting the request.

I’m frustrated

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@ggroovin replied on July 09, 2008 03:53

They changed the Twitter Help Request page. One can no longer choose 'spam request' and simply submit. In fact, when one submits a request there is no drop-down to indicate that one is submitting a spam account for consideration. They're also requiring one to provide a name and e-mail address (phone # optional) when submitting a help request.

I’m frustrated - spammers are overrunning Twitter & now they've made it harder to report 'em...

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mdy commented on July 10, 2008 02:25

Looks like they've fixed it. Must have been a temporary glitch
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@ggroovin commented on July 10, 2008 02:51

Yes, it appears this is no longer happening! Still getting spam accounts following me, but at least it's not as difficult to report 'em. Thank goodness. ;)