Version 4.2.1 of the Akismet WordPress Plugin is Now Available

by Christopher Finke October 1, 2021

Version 4.2.1 of the Akismet plugin for WordPress is now available.

This update contains a fix for a bug in version 4.2 that could cause AMP validation errors on some sites, depending on the template they were using.

To upgrade, visit the Updates page of your WordPress dashboard and follow the instructions. If you need to download the plugin zip file directly, links to all versions are available in the WordPress plugins directory.

Version 4.2 of the Akismet WordPress Plugin is Now Available

by Christopher Finke September 30, 2021

Version 4.2 of the Akismet plugin for WordPress is now available. It contains the following changes:

  • Improved compatibility with the most popular contact form plugins, which should lead to improved accuracy.
  • Added links to additional information on API usage notifications.
  • Reduced the number of network requests required on a comment page when running Akismet.

To upgrade, visit the Updates page of your WordPress dashboard and follow the instructions. If you need to download the plugin zip file directly, links to all versions are available in the WordPress plugins directory.

Version 4.1.12 of the Akismet WordPress Plugin is Now Available

by Christopher Finke September 3, 2021

Version 4.1.12 of the Akismet plugin for WordPress is now available. It contains the following changes:

  • Fixed a bug that was causing “Use of undefined constant” PHP notices.
  • Improved styling of alert notices to better match the current WordPress look and feel.

To upgrade, visit the Updates page of your WordPress dashboard and follow the instructions. If you need to download the plugin zip file directly, links to all versions are available in the WordPress plugins directory.

Version 4.1.11 of the Akismet WordPress Plugin is Now Available

by Josh Smith August 23, 2021

Version 4.1.11 of the Akismet plugin for WordPress is now available. It contains the following changes:

  • Added support for Akismet API usage notifications on Akismet settings and edit-comments admin pages.
  • Added support for the deleted_comment action when bulk-deleting comments from Spam.

To upgrade, visit the Updates page of your WordPress dashboard and follow the instructions. If you need to download the plugin zip file directly, links to all versions are available in the WordPress plugins directory.

Version 4.1.10 of the Akismet WordPress Plugin is Now Available

by Christopher Finke July 6, 2021

Version 4.1.10 of the Akismet plugin for WordPress is now available. It contains the following changes:

  • Simplified the code around checking comments in REST API and XML-RPC requests.
  • Added rel=”noopener” to the widget link to avoid warnings in Google Lighthouse.
  • Set the Akismet JavaScript as deferred instead of async to improve responsiveness.
  • Improved the preloading of screenshot popups on the edit comments admin page.

To upgrade, visit the Updates page of your WordPress dashboard and follow the instructions. If you need to download the plugin zip file directly, links to all versions are available in the WordPress plugins directory.

Version 4.1.9 of the Akismet WordPress Plugin is Now Available

by Christopher Finke March 2, 2021

Version 4.1.9 of the Akismet plugin for WordPress is now available. It contains the following changes:

  • Improvements to how Akismet handles checking pingbacks in XML-RPC multicall requests.

To upgrade, visit the Updates page of your WordPress dashboard and follow the instructions. If you need to download the plugin zip file directly, links to all versions are available in the WordPress plugins directory.

Version 4.1.8 of the Akismet WordPress Plugin is Now Available

by Christopher Finke January 6, 2021

Version 4.1.8 of the Akismet plugin for WordPress is now available. It contains the following changes:

  • Removal of a deprecated jQuery function.
  • A fix for a bug causing some data to be excluded from API calls when marking a comment as spam or not-spam.  This should improve spam detection accuracy.

To upgrade, visit the Updates page of your WordPress dashboard and follow the instructions. If you need to download the plugin zip file directly, links to all versions are available in the WordPress plugins directory.

Happy Birthday Akismet

by Christopher Finke October 25, 2020

 

Akismet was launched 15 years ago today, when Automattic founder Matt Mullenweg announced it on his blog in a post describing what Akismet was and what it could become. Given how much the world has changed in the last decade and a half (back then spammers were pushing cheap flip phones and counterfeit Livestrong bracelets), we thought it would be fun to see whether Akismet succeeded in meeting the hopes and dreams that Matt laid out back in October 2005.

“Akismet is a new web service that stops comment and trackback spam. (Or at least tries really hard to.)”

Fact check: true! Akismet has stopped 500,000,000,000 pieces of comment and trackback spam since October 2005. That’s an average of a thousand spam per second, every second, since before Twitter existed. Plus another thousand in the time it took you to read that sentence. And this one. (And this one.)

“The service is usable immediately as a WordPress plugin and the API could also be adapted for other systems.”

Akismet is still usable as a WordPress plugin, and there are now dozens of Akismet clients for non-WordPress systems, plus countless other implementations for custom platforms. Some people say that Akismet is the most open anti-spam API on the Web. Some people are right.

“If nothing else, I hope this makes blogging more joyful for at least one person.”

According to an informal survey we just performed, Akismet has made blogging more joyful for multiple people. If you’re one of those people, put on a party hat, grab a piece of cake, and join us in wishing Akismet a very happy 15th birthday.