I’m not sure who the wise guys are, but they can stop sending out the spam comments. We had nearly 1500 comments containing spam in moderation this past week. It’s pretty sorry news for a site that we haven’t posted that many updates lately to be the focus of spammers.

This event convinces me is to continue using and promoting the Akismet plug-in to help fight the spam. Not a single piece of comment spam was seen by visitors as all the spam were filtered through the Akismet services and put into moderation. Spammers really need to get a life…

One big plus from this event…the Virtual Private Server I’m using to host this site and others didn’t have a single hiccup despite all the spam we got in a short time. The VPS I’m using is available though my resale hosting service, Dakota Hosting. I’ve used a VPS for the past year and recommend it for anyone who is comfortable with server administration.

We use Akismet to filter out the spam that’s posted in the form of comments here at likethatidea.com. The photo below was taken by me a few months ago and I assure you that no altering of the photo was done. I’ll let you be the judge whether the spam comments are really evil or not.

Besides using Akismet for our Wordpress sites, we also use it for our Drupal sites. Akismet seems to work well for both content management systems.? Click here if you digg it!

I have been seeing on quite a few internet sites once again displaying misinformation that Cell Phone numbers will be released to telemarketers in the United States. The claim is that you need to register your cell phone on the national Do Not Call list. This information is false and far from the truth. The US Federal Trade Commission on January 19, 2006 posted a news release on this matter, The Truth about Cell Phones and the Do Not Call Registry. Below is some information originating from the news release.

The Federal Trade Commission today reiterated that despite the claims made in e-mails circulating on the Internet, consumers should not be concerned that their cell phone numbers will be released to telemarketers in the near future, and that it is not necessary to register cell phone numbers on the National Do Not Call (DNC) Registry to be protected from most telemarketing calls to cell phones.
The truth about cell phones and the DNC Registry is:

• Contrary to the e-mail, cell phone numbers are NOT being released to telemarketers, and you will NOT soon be getting telemarketing calls on your cell phone.
• There is NO deadline by which you must register your cell phone number on the Registry.
• Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulations prohibit telemarketers from using automated dialers to call cell phone numbers. Automated dialers are standard in the industry, so most telemarketers are barred from calling consumers on their cell phones without their consent.
• While the telecommunications industry has been discussing the possibility of creating a wireless 411 directory, according to the FCC, even if a wireless 411 directory is established, most telemarketing calls to cell phones would still be illegal, regardless of whether the number is listed on the federal government?s National Do Not Call Registry.

How about $11 Billion in fines after sending 280 million illegal spam e-mails. You just have to smile and say that it’s about time. The excerpt below is from MSNBC:

CLINTON, Iowa – An Internet service provider was awarded an $11.2 billion judgment against a Florida man for sending millions of unsolicited e-mails advertising mortgage and debt consolidation services…”This ruling sets a new standard,” Kramer said in a statement. “Gross abusers of e-mail risk exposure to public ridicule as well as the economic death penalty.”