Simple Methods to Block WPForms Spam Comments and Invalid Inquiries

Because WPforms' visual operation is very simple, many foreign trade websites use WPforms to create inquiry forms. However, as long as a website can submit comments, it is very susceptible to spam comment harassment. In this article, Naiba will introduce two methods to block WPforms form spam comments: through an online spam verification system, such as Google reCAPTCHA; or using a blacklist to prohibit submissions with specific content.

Blocking via reCAPTCHA or hCaptcha

Although WPforms comes with an 'Enable anti-spam protection' feature by default, its blocking effect is not ideal. We can integrate reCAPTCHA or hCaptcha to achieve cloud-based blocking of bot submissions.Integrating CAPTCHA only requires going into WPforms settings, finding CAPTCHA, and then configuring the corresponding parameters. Based on Naiba's actual testing, hCaptcha verification may not work properly with certain Themes. It is recommended to prioritize using reCAPTCHA for verification.After clicking into the reCAPTCHA settings interface, you can click 'read our walk through' to get the configuration tutorial. The overall configuration is relatively simple. After configuration is complete, go to the form you created, then drag and drop the verification component onto the form to enable it.

Using a Blacklist to Prohibit Submission of Certain Words

Compared to using cloud verification, when spam comments are not particularly frequent, Naiba tends to prefer using a blacklist method to intercept spam content. Here we need to manually install a Plugin called „I don't like Spam!". Plugin installation method:

1. Directly search for 'I don't like Spam!' in the WordPress Admin Dashboard to install;
2. Click this link to downloadthe installation package, then upload and install it from the Plugins section in the WP Admin Dashboard.

This Plugin supports blacklist content settings for Ninja Forms, Caldera Forms, and WPForms. After installing the Plugin, go to WordPress Admin Dashboard settings, under Discussion, find 'Disallowed Comment Keys', fill in the blacklist words extracted from spam comments on your website. After saving, content containing the blacklist can no longer be submitted via forms. For example, block usernames like Henryuphot, Henryinfem, or the URLs they leave.