Movable Type: Another Spam Reducing Technique

Earlier I wrote an article for Movable Type users providing advice of how to reduce spam intake. I have another suggestion. Add the following code to your mt-config.cgi file.

My ThrottleSeconds simply forces 120 before another comment or trackback can be submitted to my weblog. If some bot carpet bombs my weblog with large bursts of spam, very little will be accepted because of the throttle. My weblog does not receive a large dose of legitimate comments and trackbacks, so a throttle of 120 seconds is fine.

One thing to watch out for is when your write an article with more than one internal trackbacks. Your first trackback will succeed, while the rest will be throttled. This is an easy issue to overcome, though. You just need to wait for two minutes and then save again.