I’ll try to keep this short and understandable.
Yeah, good luck with that. Just read from here down to the TL;DR if you need to get out of here fast.
There are two main ways that people try to infiltrate this site.
One is by hacking into existing accounts by attempted logins using guesswork on credentials. We have a nice solution to that problem which I will not get into.
The second is by making comments, as either new commenters, or spoofed existing commenters, which comments have to be approved. This second form of infiltration, by comments seeking approval, is what we will discuss today.
So what is happening there?
TL;DR
Somebody just stepped up the level of phony commenting, by using AI to generate a “spam” comment which is substantially more convincing than our normal phony poster spam. It’s probably Ukrainians backed by the CIA, but we’ll never know for sure. The bottom line is that the latest AI allows non-English speakers to generate much better phony messaging, as you will see. I expect that intelligent, targeted, AI comments and “solutions” to the problem will be part of the other side’s big attack before the election.
Background
Since my recent whistle-blow about Boeing, we’ve had some obvious CIA probes, which I have mentioned obliquely in my own comments, and this incoming AI comment may actually be part of that campaign.
For those who are unfamiliar with “spam comments on blogs and websites”, I am presenting some background which others can skip over. Either way, the following sections present some history on my having to deal with spam comments. This provides context to what I just noticed.
Spam and Anti-Spam as a Pincer Move
Comments on this site are one of the primary vectors used by people trying to get into here to undermine things. By far the biggest portion of these comments are spam – people simply trying to post ads, links, and junk.
But things get worse. Beyond spam as a problem, there are fake solutions to the spam problem, and those are also very insidious. The combination of “spam and anti-spam” can be used to censor and control.
I strongly suspect that anti-AI-spam software, with a strong, designed, and desired side-effect of censorship, will be part of future problems, too.
It’s a lot like control by virus and vaccine, if you know what I mean!
Anyway, let’s dig into spam-vs-anti-spam, because it explains a lot about spam comments.
Anti-Spam as a Trojan Horse for Censorship
We have a very nice spam filter, which actually WORKS, because it’s not the phony spam filter called Akismet, which is supplied for “free” by WordPressDotCom. WordPress.com pretends that Akismet is a different company, but it’s just a dodge. Akismet is WordPress.
I spent years dealing with “bugs” in the Akismet and JetPack plug-ins, before I realized that those bugs are actually features for the other side. Akismet, for example, doesn’t like certain wonderful ladies and gentlemen on this site, such as Duchess01, scott467, GA/FL, Linda, and other commenters, both past and present. Akismet would basically hide these people’s comments as “spam”, trying to annoy them and get them to leave the site.
Imagine if Duchess wasn’t here. We would be half-naked, spiritually. And that’s not any way to be, in the middle of a spiritual war. Armor up, baby! I am SO GLAD that I fought the good fight against Akismet, and managed to keep Duchess on the site. Listening to the Lord with my heart is ALWAYS one of the smartest things I can do.
Fake anti-spam software is an amazing form of censorship. WordPressDotCom has some other ways of doing that, too, through “defects” in the JetPack plugin’s features. Those “defects” prevent people from posting. I was very fortunate that Linda’s husband knew which feature to turn off to get out of one of these “bugs”, and that was the beginning of my road to freedom from WordPressDotCom shenanigans.
Hiding weaponized software as carefully fed and watered “bugs” was a sharp gig, but it was too obvious to a developer, coder, builder, tester and debugger like me. Once I figured out that it was THEM and not us, I pressured Akismet in various ways to “fix things” for the particular people who were being locked out, despite the fact that Akismet makes this hard as hell. They slow-walked me through various processes, but each time I would up the ante of public disclosure quickly and exponentially, until they would very rapidly BTFO.
All of this was later solved by getting off WordPressDotCom and having our own, pure, WordPress DOT ORG site.
Here are three prior posts where I called out Automattic – the company behind WP.com. I got INSTANT BTFO on their censorship with these posts.
Automattic Against The People – Part 1: Emergency Measures
WordPress / Akismet Censorship Test Page
On our new site – this one – I was able to ditch Akismet for a far better spam solution, which I will not name. The spam filter isn’t perfect, but it’s close. VERY little spam gets past it.
Amazing what one can do, when one HONESTLY tries to stop spam.
But HERE is the kicker.
What spam does get past, is always VERY interesting.
Sometimes, it’s not actually spam, but something even more insidious – a targeted attempt to get a registered commenter on the site.
Let’s talk about that.
Site Infiltration Through Fake Spam
There is a level of website comment spam that is just straightforward and obvious links to websites, companies, crazy people, and malware. Stuff like VIAGRA, ONLINE GAMBLING, and CHURCH OF BABYLON FIVE REVELATION. Let’s call that “level zero“.
We’re not talking about that. Almost any anti-spam software eliminates that stuff immediately, or lets just a wee bit of it through for approval or rejection on lighter settings, to let the administrator know that the software is “on the job”.
At levels of spam intelligence beyond that, comment spam is designed to look – barely – like a legitimate NEW poster, hoping to get on the site. Most caught spam that I see (level one) looks like that. It’s often obsequious, cringeworthy, and eye-rolling. The most likely purpose is simply to get a stupid link on a website, by getting a comment approved. The main targets are self-deluded blog owners who either want comments on their site, no matter how degrading, or “want to believe” the fawning praise or mild constructive criticism offered by the phony commenters.
Here is some “normal” level one spam.
Keep up the amazing work! Can’t wait to see what you have in store for us next.
This is really interesting, You’re a very skilled blogger. I’ve joined your feed and look forward to seeking more of your magnificent post. Also, I’ve shared your site in my social networks!
Every time I read one of your posts, I come away with something new and interesting to think about. Thanks for consistently putting out such great content!
The “skilled blogger” stuff just makes me laugh out loud.
OH, NOES, DON’T FLATTER ME SOES!!!
That’s the normal spam. There is typically a web link to some sketchy client business that goes with it. Real rubes may fall for it, but most will not. If a moderator approves it, some stupid link gets posted on the internet, some spammer gets paid, and that’s that.
Sometimes we get dozens of spam comments that are absolutely identical, except for the link. Doesn’t matter – our filter finds them all and stops them.
However, it’s the spam comments that are not really spam comments that are more interesting. These are comments that – if you look a bit more closely – seem with some certainty to be the product of a real human intelligence posting. Those are “level two” and above.
These comments may even seem to be responding to individual commenters on our site – but are worded carefully, so that they are still likely to be dismissed as spam. Targeted infiltration does not want to stir up new, active, and knowing defenses on the target site.
We periodically get these out of Pakistan, but they’re probably coming from somebody else, because false attribution and spoofing are so common. Some of the phony comments are pretty ingenious, because they try to spoof (pretend to be) actual commenters on our site, like scott467 or DePat. Clearly those attackers have STUDIED this site. Thankfully, there are other “tells” that can be used to dismiss such comments.
The people behind these attacks are especially active when people are fighting and arguing here, because that is when it’s more likely that the moderator (ME!) will make a rash decision to approve a post, for various reasons. The psychology behind some of their moves seems quite intelligent.
Then there is “level three” infiltration, which has to be solved by Wolf’s Extreme Vetting. You may remember that term, which was more of a thing when there were lots of people clamoring to get on the site. We’ve had actual FBI agents and known CIA assets try to get on the site. NOPE. Ain’t gonna happen.
But let’s drop back to level two.
AI-Assisted Fake Spam
Yesterday, we got something quite interesting. We had a piece of “uncaught spam” in the “level two” bin, which had the following characteristics:
- probable origin – Eastern Ukraine – Nazi area not too far from the front lines
- spam alibi – shilling for an online casino gambling site out of India
- AI tactic – made its pitch by discussing the site tagline from Oppenheimer
Check out the spam pitch.
This is a great quote from Oppenheimer that highlights the importance of transparency and critical thinking. Freedom of inquiry and open criticism are indeed necessary to prevent errors and move towards truth. How can I help you further? [LINK TO SPAM SITE]
I hate to say this, but that sounds much more like a real person to me, than all this other crap I’m getting. It was certainly a WAY better grade of level two spam than we normally get, and it got right past our excellent spam filters. Based on my own reaction, it was also way more effective than most infiltration attempts, which tend to get more and more instant side-eye. This spam actually based its pitch on the site itself – not just the “skilled blogger” bullshit.
It actually had me going for a fraction of a second!
And – in my opinion – the analysis of the site goes beyond just the tagline.
Who does the commenter sound like?
Quite frankly, to me, that wording sounds a lot like either Wolf Moon, or TheseTruths.
Of course, AI has no trouble “sounding like” specific, actual people. It can read this entire site in seconds.
Now THAT is targeting! By somebody who QUICKLY knew how to sound to get the “moderator” to approve the post.
This is what a slick bullshitter does. He tries to appeal to the mark by sounding like either the mark or a trusted person. If you’ve ever known criminals, they come on very quickly in that way.
The last little bit, which is much more stupid (“How can I help you further?”) throws it back into the spam category, and IMO that tag-on sentence is very intentional, so that if I the recipient’s spidey senses are being triggered, those suspicions will be relieved by the thought that “it’s just spam.” The recipient will flush it, rather than doing what I’m doing now, which is to take note, to realize what is actually going on, and to dig in, looking at future risks.
But imagine how deceptive that comment could have been, if the authors had not added the “spam” dodge at the end!
The comment is designed for me to not read it too closely. They were hoping that I would either just approve it, or dismiss it as spam.
The thing is, to me, this comment is CLEARLY the result of AI.
It sounds VERY much like many of the AIs I’ve dealt with.
And if it were me programming it, I would have done exactly what I think they did, which is to have it read the site and construct a comment to try to get an account on the site, but not raise any awareness of the attack, so that they could “try again” if it failed.
My theory?
Somebody, somewhere, such as Langley, is helping the Ukrainians use AI in cyberwar, and giving them lists of people to target. Very likely the CIA and their “friends”. You know – the people who are assassinating, or attempting to assassinate, honest politicians like Abe, Fico, Bolsonaro, and others.
Now – it gets worse.
I suspect that the evil powers will milk this form of attack for a while, letting it get more and more sophisticated and pernicious, until the “problem” is pumped up by the media, and is ripe to be “solved”. Probably using woke AI that the BLOB controls.
SO – we get screwed – both as the problem builds – AND when they offer solutions at the expense of truth and freedom.
Yeah. Anyway, I now expect an increasing load of hard-to-handle AI comments to hit before the election. Along with calls by the commies to “do something” – that being something that harms freedom.
Get ready. This is your distant early warning, patriots. Trouble is coming, as winter approaches, and it stinks of government-abused AI.
Wolf Moon
Thank you so much for this. And thank you for all your efforts in keeping this site “clean.”
You are most welcome!
I have a theory about why this is the case. Not going to share it at this juncture as I suspect some of us are going to be targeted as the election nears.
In the meantime, I will just keep the status quo.
Mysterious Miss Mystifies 😉
You’re doing exactly what you need to be doing! 😎
you remember when they “mistakenly” took down my site? ever since then I have been receiving so many likes on my posts that I’ve never had before. and subscribers as well. being the suspicious person I’ve become, I started keeping track…new names and what types of posts they like. for some their likes are predictable–like any post having to do with animals; some like travel pieces. but i am keeping track and we’ve only had one new person posting a comment here or there.
but i am watching.
nothing like you’re doing (I don’t have the skill set…lol)
but i am watching nonetheless
I had those weird watchers/readers for a long time, I think almost 2 years, at my main blog, Special Connections. They had this pattern of access on different posts & it was very obvious they were keeping eyes on my site. I don’t actually do posts there very often & they Finally seemed to have backed off, as of a few months back.
It wouldn’t surprise me if they don’t dive in on the background of the different authors & commenters here at the Q-Tree to try to cast a wide net hoping to snare some of us 🙁
snare some of us doing what? exercising our freedom of speech?
Pretty much. Sharing unapproved messages, aka the truth, seems to perpetually piss off the tyrants 🙁
I always say that it’s better to be pissed off than being pissed on.
No doubt!!!
Some places in San Francisco charge extra for that.
Good! You learned the right lessons from that “accidental” hit job! Eyes wide open!
still baffles me to why though. I mean your site is more informative, break the narrative wide open expose the lies.
mine is more shits and giggles…
Yours is where many people will go when they take this one down!
The Blob lives in fear of loss of power. They literally want to destroy our whole movement. They try to cover all contingencies.
Speaking of hit jobs, my bell notifier has disappeared. I logged out and logged back in, but no joy.
Hmmm seeing you listed as a Coyote, that makes me think you are signed in correctly, fwiw. Do you have your bell back yet?
Nope.
Sorry, hope Wolf can help you…
I’m trying…
Try logging out using the sidebar, and when you log back in (also using the sidebar), be sure to choose the top option, “Log In With WordPress”, which uses your WordPress identity and password.
We cannot use this site’s login and have the bell notifier work. The bell is a JetPack feature that WP.com uses to keep us on a string, so the Blob can monitor us.
I’ll try again. But that’s how I always do it. I’ll log out of WordPress too.
I’m right here – we’ll figure it out!
Well, I tried it. Logged out of both and back in. Didn’t work. This happened one time before. I can see the bell when I am on WordPress, so if I keep that tab open, I can go look at the bell.
OK. You may also have to turn off shields for this site, if they accidentally came back on. That’s one other item that I know can kill the bell.
They’re off. I just checked.
I remember that’s what it was last time.
One of the things that has to happen, is for WordPress to make a cookie for its website, and then for our site’s page to read it. So the browser has to allow reading of “third party cookies” on our site. But another key point is that WordPress has to stay “logged in” (and the tab killed but not signed out), with full cookie permissions, so that the cookie hangs around with a login key.
Wolf, I’m sorry you have to go through all this just to keep this site safe and running smoothly. Just one question: is there another Linda posting here?
I ask because you said this: “I was very fortunate that Linda’s husband knew which feature to turn off to get out of one of these “bugs”, and that was the beginning of my road to freedom from WordPressDotCom shenanigans.”
Since I don’t have a husband, there is either another Linda on the site, or something very weird is going on.
Linda
Whoa.
Or he had cranial flatulence and was thinking of someone else.
Exactly! I may be mis-remembering, Now I’m going to have to dig through the records!
Uh oh…
I will dig through the records and make sure I didn’t mix you up with somebody. She had a geek husband familiar with WP. And we did have another Linda at one point, I’m pretty sure, years ago.
Got the answer! It was grandmaintexas, not you. Sorry about that! I think you told me about something else one time and I conflated the incidents.
Thanks, Wolf! I just wanted to make sure someone wasn’t spoofing me and causing you problems.
I hear you!!!
You were absolutely correct to consider the possibility.
Indeed! They do try! And Linda (this one, for sure) has been a target.
whew…would love to see GIT back here too!
It’s funny – I had absolutely no idea it was her. I remembered it as Linda, and when I tried to think who else it might be, it was several other possibilities, but NOT her.
That is funny. Your mind is Still working better than mine & I think you Might have a few years on me 🙂 As Indiana Jones says, “It’s not the years, it’s the mileage!”
LOL!!!
😉
Your lack of husband makes you fair game for the smooth talkers on this site.
I apologize in advance for having accidentally blown Linda’s cover! 😅
I didn’t realize we had Any of those 🙃
Thank you Wolfie. This was very clear even to a computer illiterate like me.
I am going to pass it on to Hubby. He may pass it on as reading material to others.
My takeaway is how fortunate we are to have you running this site, Wolf! Thank you so much for keeping it safe, for keeping us informed, and for warning us about what’s coming. The lead-up to this election could be one of the most dangerous times in our history. They will not only try to steal the election but will also subvert our rights by “fixing” problems they have created.
Amen on Wolf & 😡 for the rest! Praise the Lord & pass the ammo 😎
We still haven’t seen Thomas Wicter’s Algerian Strategy come into play yet.
THAT is what all the illegals were imported for.
THAT is why the DEFUND the police campaign.
WHY no Bail law turns criminals back out on the streets.. LINK
WHY we have SOROS DAs and Judges.
I think the run up to the election is going to make ‘The Summer of Love’ look like a walk in the park.
Nasty business. We’re gonna need to stay sharp to beat that stuff.
The invaders are certainly a wild card that can played at their choosing. One that can be dialed up or dialed down at their choosing.
I certainly hope they understand everyone who had an assist in bringing the invaders in can be brought up by Raiklin Court of public opinion and prosecuted locally for treason even more easily than Raiklin can go after all the guys on his list.
In fact everyone must manage to bring up the Algerian Strategy to Ivan and his followers whenever engaging him on line. We should be way past the “what can we do?” phase of all this bull shit, when the power has been in our hands all this time.
I miss Wictor a lot, and have hopes he shows up sometime on Roseanne’s weekly Rumble show.
In his last post, Wictor explained that 40 people out of 46,000 who read the post donated to keep the site going. That ended it for him.
Vox Day has always said that subscription is the only way to ensure site viability and anti-fragility. I wonder if it solves evils like the ones described in Wolf’s post.
And btw, no intention to start anything, just plain sentiment, but I really do miss grandmaintexas.
I think she’s over at Sylvia’s & perhaps Marica’s too…
They will not only try to steal the election but will also subvert our rights by “fixing” problems they have created.
Reagan nailed it years ago.
Government is not the solution. Government is the problem.
AI, is simply another facet of government abusing the folks. A feature. Not a flaw.
Yes. They can’t be trusted to be in charge of it. That’s my take.
Thank you!
We may actually live in one of the most interesting times – if that is any more consolation than curse.
Thanks, Wolf Moon.
The trite saying that honesty is the best policy has met with the just criticism that honesty is not policy. The real honest man is honest from conviction of what is right, not from policy.
Robert E. Lee
Amen!!!
Great quote! 👍
At some point in my life I realized that doing things from a conviction that they are right (morality), is almost always the most effective way to achieve one’s goals (policy).
Amen. & you can live with yourself throughout the process too!
Confirms my side eye on occasion, especially other sites. Thank you, Wolf.
You’re most welcome!!!
Great insights on what you are having to deal with, to keep QTree running securely.
“Trouble is coming, as winter approaches, and it stinks of government-abused AI.”
Government mucks everything up, if for no other reason they are incompetent AND no ethics to guide them.
Well said. There are good people in government, but things have been twisted to the point that the good people have no control over the abusers in government, who did the twisting for their own ends.
Welp, looks like I’m gone have to change it up somewhat, to throw ’em off track.
If I suddenly stop swearing, profess to love tofu, and want nothing more in life than a trip to a gay pride parade, don’t worry! I’m just putting them off the scent.
These people best be careful. Most of us here are also AI. You know, Actually Intelligent.
Has always run under the assumption that we are in something akin to social petri dish and that our thoughts and reactions are peaked at by a diverse group of social scientists, politicos and spy merchants. 😮 But if it’s honesty they want, they get plenty of it here. 😁and yeah, we do stare back 😆
They are terrible at trying to “become” one of us. As Wolf points out, they might be getting better at it, and maybe AI will help, but their studying us has not led to much successful imitation that I know of.
“Howdy” to them from the petri dish. 👋
Have believed from the beginning that this site is highly scrutinized precisely because of the participants, examined to gain insight into the deeper thinking of who needs to be crushed.
YUP.
I’m starting to understand why Elon Musk wants people to register on Twitter – beyond just the money. Knowing who is ACTUALLY a person is a big deal in running a site. Especially a site as big as Twitter.
I love it!
LMAO!!!