I have finished deleting the 1000+ spam messages that were posted a few days ago. I have also been in contact with the folks who run the Wikidot service that hosts our wiki. According to them, the only way to prevent a similar massive spam attack from happening again is to not allow non-registered "guest" posts anymore. I have changed the forum permissions to implement this restriction. Therefore, from this point forward, you must be a registered Wikidot user to post in the forums. Here is how to create a Wikidot account (if you do not have one already):
- Click on "Create account" in the top-right corner of the site.
- Enter a username (pseudonyms are acceptable), your e-mail address (it will not be shared with anyone — not even with me), and a password.
- Check your e-mail for a confirmation message and click the link to activate your account.
You should then be able to create new threads and add posts to existing threads in the forums (except in the archived forums from previous years, which remain locked). Your anonymity will still be preserved, assuming your chosen username doesn't identify you. Thus, you should be able to use the forums in much the same way as before.
This move will make it easier to combat spam because (a) it forces spammers to create Wikidot accounts before they can post; and (b) I can ban their accounts to prevent re-use. In the event of another massive spam attack, the Wikidot folks have the ability to do one-step deletion of all spam posted by a registered user.
Thanks for your cooperation!
