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Category: News and Updates

  • User Registration & Membership – Spam Protection Guide in 2026

    User Registration & Membership – Spam Protection Guide in 2026

    CleanTalk has added spam protection for the User Registration & Membership WordPress plugin by WPEverest through direct form integration. If you use this plugin, be sure to enable the highly effective CleanTalk Anti-Spam solution. In this post, we also review all anti-spam options available for User Registration & Membership.

    User Registration & Membership – Free & Paid Memberships, Subscriptions, Content Restriction, User Profile, Custom User Registration & Login Builder

    First of all let’s see what this plugin is,

    User Registration & Membership by WPEverest is a powerful WordPress plugin for creating custom user registration forms, login pages, and membership websites without coding. It features a drag-and-drop form builder, user profile management, content restriction, and payment integrations for subscription-based sites. Ideal for communities, online courses, and client portals, the plugin helps website owners manage users and memberships efficiently while improving user experience.

    According wordpress.org, this plugin is installed on 60,000+ sites. All features of Anti-Spam plugin by CleanTalk for WordPress.

    Installing User Registration & Membership

    There are few steps to be this plugin installed,

    1. Go to WordPress console -> Plugins -> Add plugin, type ‘user’.
    2. Install ‘User Registration & Membership’ by WPEverest and activate the plugin.
    3. Next you see a setup screen, that can be skipped on this moment.
    4. That’s all the plugin is installed!

    On the next steps we work with page YOUR-SITE.COM/registration/.

    By the if you want place the registration form on another page,

    1. Follow to WordPress console -> User Registration & Membership -> Registration form.
    2. Copy shortcode like this [user_registration_form id=”8″] from the right/top corner of screen and place on any other page you want to.

    Anti-Spam plugin by CleanTalk for WordPress

    In beginning a few words about the plugin that we are going to use against spam,

    CleanTalk Anti-Spam plugin for WordPress automatically protects your website from spam comments, registrations, contact forms, and fake orders without using CAPTCHA. It uses cloud-based spam detection and real-time databases to block bots in the background while keeping the experience smooth for legitimate visitors.

    According wordpress.org, this plugin is installed on 200,000+ web sites. To install the plugin please follow this guide.

    The next step is testing the anti-spam protection.

    How to check spam protection for User Registration & Membership

    We are going to test protection and the most important step in this process to do it as a regular visitor, not as as authorized user/administrator in WordPress console!

    Follow this,

    1. Jump to YOUR-SITE.COM/registration/ in incognito mode in your browser.
    2. Fill up the form using test email address s@cleantalk.org. This is a service email, using which do not cause block listing your IP in CleanTalk’s cloud.
    3. You see response from the cloud like this,

    That’s all! The protection is active and ready to go. If you have any questions, add a comment and we will be happy to help you. In addition, in the Cloud Dashboard you can find extra details regarding all submissions for registration form.

    What additional anti-spam tools are available for User Registration & Membership?

    On this day on the market there are a few more tools to protect User Registration & Membership against spam bots. As well as this plugin has some built-in tools. Let’s see what we have,

    1. This plugin has built-in integration with Google reCaptcha version 2 and 3. reCAPTCHA by Google helps protect WordPress registration forms from spam by verifying that users are real people using behavioral analysis or interactive challenges. It blocks automated bot sign-ups and reduces fake registrations while allowing legitimate users to register securely.
      The settings located are here WordPress console -> User Registration & Membership -> Registration & Login -> Captcha. The Site and Secret keys are available on website.
    2. The next tool is hCaptcha. hCaptcha is a privacy-focused CAPTCHA solution that protects WordPress registration forms from spam by requiring users to complete human verification challenges, helping block automated bot sign-ups. Unlike reCAPTCHA by Google, hCaptcha places stronger emphasis on user privacy and data control, making it a popular alternative for websites that want effective spam protection with less tracking.
      The settings located are here WordPress console -> User Registration & Membership -> Registration & Login -> Captcha. The Site Key and Secret key are available on website.
    3. Next is Turnstile by Cloudflare. It protects WordPress registration forms from spam by automatically verifying visitors using browser and behavioral signals without showing CAPTCHA challenges. Unlike reCAPTCHA, Turnstile is designed to be privacy-friendly and frictionless, reducing spam registrations while keeping the signup process seamless for real users.
      The settings located are unde same path as tools before WordPress console -> User Registration & Membership -> Registration & Login -> Captcha. The Site Key and Secret key are available on website.
    4. There are also bunch of universal anti-spam plugins like Simple CAPTCHA Alternative by Elliot Sowersby, WP Armour and etc. All of them can be found on wordpress.org.

    As my research shows there is no plugins or direct integration with Akismet.

    I have questions…

    What if I don’t use User Registration & Membership plugin, but still have spam registrations (users)?

    In this case, Anti-Spam by CleanTalk is the best way to get rid of standard wordpress registration forms spam.

    Does this guide work for WPforo plugin?

    No, it does not. Read this guide instead to protect WPforo Forum against spam registrations.

    How about spam protection for s2Member plugin?

    Please use another guide in order of s2member spam protection.

    Final thoughts

    I hope this guide helped resolve all spam issues on your registration form. If not, Sign Up for an account and our CleanTalk team will be happy to help.

  • QuickCal Spam Protection for WordPress

    QuickCal Spam Protection for WordPress

    quickcal screenshot 03
    quickcal screenshot 03

    QuickCal forms is a good choice when you need to use a powerful booking calendar. Always be sure to use the most effective Anti-Spam plugin. For example CleanTalk Anti-Spam will guarantee your QuickCal booking form spam protection in about 5 minutes.

    Once CleanTalk Anti-Spam plugin is installed it starts to protect all of the existing forms on your WordPress website. It may not only be QuickCal forms but many others.

    Download CleanTalk Anti-Spam plugin | Download QuickCal plugin 

    How to install CleanTalk Anti-Spam plugin

    To install the Anti-Spam plugin, go to your WordPress admin panelPluginsAdd New.

    Then enter «СleanTalk» in the search box and click the Install button for «Spam protection, Anti-Spam, FireWall by CleanTalk».

    After installing the plugin, click the «Activate»‎ button.

    After it is done go to the plugin settings and click the «Get Access Key Automatically» button. Then just click the «Save Settings»‎ button.

    That’s it! From now your WordPress website and QuickCal forms are protected from spam.

    You can always use our detailed installation instructions.

    How to check your QuickCal forms spam protection in about 5 minutes

    You can test the work of Anti-Spam protection for your QuickCal forms by using a test email s @ cleantalk.org (without spaces). First, open the form in an Incognito browser tab. Fill in all the required form fields and send a form. After submitting the form, you will see a block message about the block on the form submission.

    If you have any questions, add a comment and we will be happy to help you.

    Create your Cleantalk account – Register now and enjoy your spam-free QuickCal forms.

    You may view a complete list of CleanTalk Anti-Spam plugin features here. https://cleantalk.org/help/introduction 

    WordPress spam protection

  • Chatway Live Chat Spam Protection for WordPress

    Chatway Live Chat Spam Protection for WordPress

    Struggling with spam flooding your Chatway Live Chat on WordPress? You’re not alone – it’s a common headache. The source of spam are only these two widgets and there is a plugin that protects both of them, and does it without using annoying CAPTCHAs.

    The Anti-Spam by CleanTalk grants cloud protection from spam, is absolutely invisible to users and runs in background. Which might be pretty useful – 300,000+ active installations and 3,000+ reviews on WordPress can’t lie. It contains many features such as logging for your control, SpamFirewall, stop words and much more.

    Anti-Spam plugin by CleanTalk

    Step 1: Install the Anti-Spam plugin

    CleanTalk is a powerful plugin that blocks spam silently in the background. It also has direct integration with Chatway Live Chat and here’s how to set it up:

    1. Firstly, to install the Anti-Spam plugin, go to your WordPress admin panelPluginsAdd New. You can also download it in the WordPress catalog.

      Anti-spam plugin installation
    2. Then enter «СleanTalk» in the search box and click the Install button for «Spam protection, Anti-Spam, FireWall by CleanTalk».

      Anti-spam plugin installation
    3. After installing the plugin, click the «Activate»‎ button.

      Anti-spam plugin installation
    4. After it is done go to the plugin settings and click the «Get Access Key Automatically» button.

      Setting spam protection
    5. Then go to Advanced settings in the right-bottom and find the “Protect external forms” and switch it on. It is needed to protect WhatsApp widget inside Chatway Live Chat from spam. Then just click the «Save Settings»‎ button.

      Screenshot 2025 07 08 at 12.09.24

    From now Anti-Spam starts protecting all forms on your site including Chatway Live Chat without any extra setup.

    Enjoy the result!

    If you have any questions, add a comment and we will be happy to help you.

  • IPS Community Suite 5 Spam Protection by CleanTalk

    IPS Community Suite 5 Spam Protection by CleanTalk

    Anti-spam protection for IPS Community Suite 5 is now available with CleanTalk — a cloud-powered filter that stops spam in real time without affecting user experience.

    Now there’s an easy way to stop all of that.

    CleanTalk now works with IPS 5, offering fast and automatic spam filtering — easy to set up, free to try. It connects your forum to a powerful cloud-based engine that checks every signup and post in real time. No visual tests. No manual work. Just quiet, automatic blocking in the background.

    The system uses an always-updated database of known spam sources and smart behavior analysis to stop suspicious activity before it reaches your forum. Whether you’re running a niche board or a large online community, CleanTalk scales with your traffic and works invisibly behind the scenes. You stay focused on your content — not fighting spam.

    Setup takes just a few minutes through the IPS admin panel — quick, simple, and no extra steps required. You’ll need your CleanTalk Access Key to activate protection.
    Full setup guide: cleantalk.org/help/install-ipboard5

    Anti-Spam Protection for IPS Community Suite 5


    More about CleanTalk: cleantalk.org

    Cloud-Based Anti-Spam Protection for IPS Community Suite 5

    Here’s how it works: when someone tries to register or send a message, their data is checked by CleanTalk’s cloud servers. If it looks like spam — it’s blocked. If it’s a real user — they won’t notice anything. No popups, no puzzles, no delays.

    Because all the filtering happens in the cloud, your site stays fast and clean. There’s nothing heavy to install, and no need to update rules — CleanTalk handles that for you.

    You can even test the protection by trying to register with this email:

    stop_email@example.com.

    It’ll be blocked right away if everything is working.

    CleanTalk updates its spam filters every day, so your forum stays protected — even as spam tactics change. Whether your site is small or super active, this cloud system keeps things smooth.

    Also available: CleanTalk now integrates directly with WPZOOM Forms — read more on the blog.

  • CleanTalk Anti-Spam Module for PrestaShop

    CleanTalk Anti-Spam Module for PrestaShop

    Fake accounts, junk messages, and automated bots are all forms of PrestaShop spam that can quietly damage your store.They slow down your website, clutter your customer database, and skew your analytics. More importantly, they steal time — time your team could spend on real customers instead of cleaning up fake ones.

    These spam attacks aren’t just annoying — they drain server resources, degrade site performance, and can even impact your reputation if spam slips through to public-facing pages or contact forms.

    Real-Time PrestaShop Spam Protection with CleanTalk

    The CleanTalk Anti-Spam Module for PrestaShop is built to block spam before it ever reaches your site. It connects your store to a cloud-based filtering system that checks every registration, comment, and form submission in real time. Suspicious activity is filtered instantly and automatically — without interrupting the user experience.

    There’s no need to configure complex rules or adjust spam settings manually. CleanTalk’s smart filtering handles it all behind the scenes, giving you a cleaner store without any of the hassle.

    Easy Setup, No Maintenance

    Installing the module takes just a few minutes, and once it’s running, it stays up to date on its own. The system is lightweight and designed to have zero impact on your site’s speed or performance.

    CleanTalk also doesn’t require constant tweaking or oversight. It’s designed to be “set and forget” — offering strong, ongoing protection with no technical effort from your side.

    prestashop spam

    In the admin panel, go to the Modules → Module Manager section, find and press the Upload a module button.

    Clean Store, Better Data, More Time

    With spam gone, your store loads faster, your data becomes more reliable, and your team spends less time dealing with fake users or junk submissions. That means more energy focused on growth — not cleanup.

    If you’re looking for a simple but effective way to fight PrestaShop spam, CleanTalk delivers reliable protection that just works.

    Try CleanTalk’s PrestaShop spam protection module and let your store focus on real customers — not bots.
    If you also want to validate email addresses during registration or checkout, check out CleanTalk’s Email Address Validator to block temporary and fake emails automatically.

    Want the same clean experience on your blog or business site? Check out the CleanTalk Anti-Spam Plugin for WordPress — with the same real-time protection, just for WordPress.

  • OpenMage Spam Protection for Magento

    OpenMage Spam Protection for Magento

    Online stores are frequent targets for spam registrations, fake orders, and malicious bots. OpenMage spam attacks waste your time and server resources, skew analytics and business data, and increase security risks. 

    Good news for OpenMage owners! Anti-spam protection is finally available for OpenMage on Magento. Thanks to a contribution by our client ioweb-gr, you can easily integrate CleanTalk’s spam protection into your store right away.

    What is CleanTalk Anti-Spam

    CleanTalk Anti-Spam is a cloud-based invisible spam protection service trusted by over 1,000,000 websites. Whether you run a blog, a corporate site, or, especially, an eCommerce store,

    CleanTalk Anti-Spam automatically screens all incoming submissions, registrations, and orders, blocking spam without using intrusive captchas or complicated workflows.

    Install OpenMage spam protection

    The integration for OpenMage spam protection is freely available here: download the OpenMage Integration.

    Screenshot 2025 07 09 at 10.19.02

    Here’s a quick note from the developer about the built integration:

    • Support for OpenMage versions with PHP ^8.1
    • Implement client class for facilitating communications with the API that can use GET / POST (Form) | POST (JSON)
    • Separate concerns in reusable classes for each endpoint
    • Minor optimizations for properly fetching the key
    • Add customer attribute to mark customers as legitimate or spam users for easier cleanup
    • Add cron job to automate checking customers. Subject to change if better endpoint is found as it gives a lot of false positives.

    Feel free to use the solution. Don’t leave spam a chance!

  • Gwolle Guestbook spam protection for WordPress

    Gwolle Guestbook spam protection for WordPress

    CleanTalk added spam protection for Gwolle Guestbook plugin using direct form integration. So in case, you prefer using this type of forms be sure to use the most effective Anti-Spam plugin. Read the guide below and learn 4 steps to protect all your contact forms from spam.

    Once the CleanTalk Anti-Spam plugin is installed it starts to protect all of the existing forms on your WordPress website. It may not only be Gwolle Guestbook but also many others.

    Download CleanTalk Anti-Spam plugin | Download Gwolle Guestbook 

    How to install CleanTalk Anti-Spam plugin

    To install the Anti-Spam plugin, go to your WordPress admin panelPluginsAdd New.

    Then enter «CleanTalk» in the search box and click the Install button for «Spam protection, Anti-Spam, FireWall by CleanTalk».

    After installing the plugin, click the «Activate»‎ button.

    After it is done go to the plugin settings and click the «Get Access Key Automatically» button. Then just click the «Save Settings»‎ button.

    That’s it! From now you How to completely protect your Gwolle Guestbook from spam.

    How to check Gwolle Guestbook Spam Protection

    You can test the work of Anti-Spam protection for your Gwolle Guestbook form by using a test email s @ cleantalk.org (without spaces). First, open the form in an Incognito browser tab. Fill in all the required form fields and send a form.

    Screenshot 2025 05 20 at 16.58.52

    After submitting the form, you will see a block message about the block on the form submission.

    Screenshot 2025 05 20 at 17.02.40

    Once again, this screen is only for spam bots, so don’t pay much attention to It’s view.

    If you have any questions, add a comment and we will be happy to help you.

    Create your CleanTalk account – Register now and protect your forms from spam in 5 minutes.

    The protection works only for website visitors, not for website admins. Be sure to test the form protection using Incognito mode.

    Additional features

    • CleanTalk protects all forms at once: comments, registrations, feedbacks, contacts, reviews.
    • Installation takes about 1-2 minutes.
    • Smart 99% protection against spambots.
    • Always online – 24/7 technical support.
    • Logs, SpamFireWall, personal lists, country filters, stop-words, and many others.

    Discover the complete list of CleanTalk Anti-Spam plugin features here.

  • Awesome Support Forms Spam Protection for WordPress

    Awesome Support Forms Spam Protection for WordPress

    CleanTalk added spam protection for Awesome Support using direct form integration. So in case, you prefer using this type of forms be sure to use the most effective Anti-Spam plugin. Read the guide below and learn 4 steps to protect all your contact forms from spam.

    Once the CleanTalk Anti-Spam plugin is installed it starts to protect all of the existing forms on your WordPress website. It may not only be Awesome Support but also many others.

    Download CleanTalk Anti-Spam plugin | Download Awesome Support 

    How to install CleanTalk Anti-Spam plugin

    To install the Anti-Spam plugin, go to your WordPress admin panelPluginsAdd New.

    Then enter «CleanTalk» in the search box and click the Install button for «Spam protection, Anti-Spam, FireWall by CleanTalk».

    After installing the plugin, click the «Activate»‎ button.

    After it is done go to the plugin settings and click the «Get Access Key Automatically» button. Then just click the «Save Settings»‎ button.

    That’s it! From now you How to completely protect your Contact Forms from spam.

    How to check Awesome Support Spam Protection

    You can test the work of Anti-Spam protection for your Contact Forms by using a test email s @ cleantalk.org (without spaces). First, open the form in an Incognito browser tab. Fill in all the required form fields and send a form.

    awesome support test

    After submitting the form, you will see a block message about the block on the form submission.

    If you have any questions, add a comment and we will be happy to help you.

    Create your CleanTalk account – Register now and protect your Contact Forms from spam in 5 minutes

    Update

    The protection works only for website visitors, not for website admins. Be sure to test the form protection using Incognito mode.

    Additional features

    • CleanTalk protects all forms at once: comments, registrations, feedbacks, contacts, reviews.
    • Installation takes about 1-2 minutes.
    • Smart 99% protection against spambots.
    • Always online – 24/7 technical support.
    • Logs, SpamFireWall, personal lists, country filters, stop-words, and many others.

    Discover the complete list of CleanTalk Anti-Spam plugin features here.

  • How to validate registrations using CleanTalk API with BVScript

    How to validate registrations using CleanTalk API with BVScript

    Lately, we sometimes get questions like “The code samples on GitHub are written in C#, they don’t seem to convert to VB. Do you have any code sample for visual basic ?”

    The good news is that now we have! The project below demonstrates how to use the Cleantalk API with VBScript to validate registrations. Feel free to ask any questions – we’re here to help.

    Requirements

    1. Register a Cleantalk account https://cleantalk.org/register?product=anti-spam
    2. Obtain the access key from the CleanTalk account https://cleantalk.org/help/add-website

    Usage

    1. Place the code of Cleantalk class in your VBScript file.

    VB
     ```vbscript
     Class CleantalkClass
         Private auth_key
         Private check_message
         Private user_email
         Private user_ip
         Private user_name
         Private user_js_state
         Private user_submit_time
         Private form_event_token
         Private response
         Private verdict
         Private codes
         Private comment
         ... other class code
         ... other class code
       else
            validateResponse = false
       end if
         end function
      
      end class
     ```

    2. Initialize the Cleantalk class instance, use your own access key when instantiating.

    VB
    Dim Cleantalk : Set Cleantalk = (New CleantalkClass)("your_access_key", "check_newuser")

    3. Set user data when the logic is ready to check the user.

    VB
    Cleantalk.setUserEmail("stop_email@example.com")
    Cleantalk.setUserIP("10.10.10.10")
    Cleantalk.setUserName("John Doe")
    Cleantalk.setUserJSState("1")
    Cleantalk.setUserSubmitTime("5")
    Cleantalk.setFormEventToken("a_32_symbols_event_token_value")

    4. Send request to the API.

    VB
    Send request to the API:

    5. Validate the response.

    VB
    If Cleantalk.validateResponse Then
        If Cleantalk.getVerdict = 1 Then
            WScript.Echo "Validation success. User is allowed."
        Else
            WScript.Echo "Validation success. User is blocked. Reason: " & Cleantalk.getCodes & " " & Cleantalk.getComment
        End If
    Else
        WScript.Echo "Validation failed. Code: " & Cleantalk.getCodes & " Comment: " & Cleantalk.getComment
    End If

    Important! Do validation every time after response gathering.

    Functions

    • setUserEmail(email)
    • setUserIP(ip)
    • setUserName(name)
    • setUserJSState(jsState)
    • setUserSubmitTime(submitTime)
    • setFormEventToken(eventToken)
    • sendRequest()
    • validateResponse()
    • getVerdict()
    • getCodes()
    • getComment()

    Example

    VB
    Dim Cleantalk : Set Cleantalk = (New CleantalkClass)("your_auth_key", "check_message")
    
    Cleantalk.setUserEmail("user@example.com")
    Cleantalk.setUserIP("192.168.1.1")
    Cleantalk.setUserName("John Doe")
    Cleantalk.setUserJSState("0")
    Cleantalk.setUserSubmitTime("0")
    Cleantalk.setFormEventToken("your_event_token")
    
    Cleantalk.sendRequest
    
    If Cleantalk.validateResponse Then
        If Cleantalk.getVerdict = 1 Then
            WScript.Echo "Validation success. User is allowed."
        Else
            WScript.Echo "Validation success. User is blocked. Reason: " & Cleantalk.getCodes & " " & Cleantalk.getComment
        End If
    Else
        WScript.Echo "Validation failed. Code: " & Cleantalk.getCodes & " Comment: " & Cleantalk.getComment
    End If

    Implementing of BotDetector JavaScript library

    To use the BotDetector JavaScript library, you need to include the script in the HTML of the page.

    VB
    <script src="https://moderate.cleantalk.org/ct-bot-detector-wrapper.js"></script>

    This script will automatically detect the form submission event and send the data to the Cleantalk API.

    Please note, that the script does not perform any checks, just sends the user’s frontend data (like JavaScirpt state, mouse position etc.) to the API.

    Example

    VB
    <!DOCTYPE html>
    <html lang="en">
       <head>
       <meta charset="UTF-8">
       <title>Register</title>
       <!--Bot-detector JS library wrapper. This script must be added to the HTML of the page.-->
       <script src="https://moderate.cleantalk.org/ct-bot-detector-wrapper.js"></script>
    </head>
    <body>
       <form method="post" action="your_form_handler_script">
          <label for="user_name">User name</label>
          <label for="user_email">User email</label>
          <input type="text" name="user_name" id="search_field" /> <br />
          <input type="text" name="user_email" id="search_field" /> <br />
          <input type="submit" />
       </form>
    </body>
    </html>

    When you got added the script, the form will be updated with hidden event_token field after the script loaded. This field value you should transfer to VB Script

    Once the token is provided in the API request, the VB Script will make the API takes in count the frontend data.

    Make note, that data provided on event_token have the higher priority than the data set by optional VB Script setters.