wrong bans from accessing site

[bvanevery]

When I post my mod stuff to Reddit, there's an ongoing problem that some people are banned from accessing AC2.  People say they've never even tried to visit AC2 before.  Latest example:

It won't let me access the link...

    Sorry Guest, you are banned from using this forum!
    This ban is not set to expire.

I know that some of these people in the past have managed to get in contact with you, or you with them, or somehow you managed to resolve the problem.  But the problem is ongoing.  It's loss of traffic to AC2.  I assume that for every 1 person who does mention they're having problems, others are just giving up.  Do you have any idea why this is happening?  These "false bans".

[bvanevery]

I started looking at the Simple Machines developer pages and support forum for other reasons.  The following advice on a possible source of the problem was given:

>>>My thought is those bans were issued in the past but though those members are no longer there the bans are still in the database.
>>
>>You mean deleted members?
>
>Yes, I remember reading a thread on here some years back which warned this was one reason not to ban on IP address.

[Geo]

I remember I was banned once (many years ago) when I was trying to log in to the site through a ferry's wifi. Appearantly the Wifi router on that ship was hacked, and as a result I was banned on AC2.

[Buster's Uncle]

It's the spambots.  I've perma'd less humans than I have fingers on one hand - but bots I banned years ago keep coming by, eating up precious processor cycles.

-So, y'know, people complaining are probably coming here on sketchy servers --- but the bots just come again from different dubious IPs, so I need to roll up my sleeves and go through the very long ban list, undoing the IP bans - it's gonna suck.

[bvanevery]

Are there any 3rd party services that help with IP ban lists?  Although, that can open up its own can of worms, when they decide to ban sites that others think are legit.  Rah rah internets.

Also possibly of interest, I notice that SMF is up to a 2.0.17 release.  This site displays 2.0.11 as its version.  Some of the intervening releases may have brought performance and security improvements.

[Buster's Uncle]

I can't imagine anything helping with that first but me tracking down all the IP bans and un-doing; I gave Draz permission to do that months ago, but haven't heard back about that.

-I'm afraid to touch stuff like upgrades w/o input from our tech guys...

[bvanevery]

I read in their support forum that the transition from 2.0.15 to 2.0.16 and then 2.0.17 was painless.  No idea about before that, like 2.0.11 to 2.0.15.  I got interrupted in that life project of "understanding the forum tech" and am currently on other things now.  I may circle back to it at some point.

[Buster's Uncle]

Well, that's 2 1/2 hours of my life I'll never get back, but please make an announcement that the IP ban problem ought to be fixed now, and I'd be mighty obliged if everyone checked us out again.

[bvanevery]

I'll make a note of it at the top of my mod release this month.  Probably in a few days.

[bvanevery]

Got a private email feedback about my mod, from someone who tried to join the site a number of times, but couldn't.  I suspect he's faced with an archaic site ban.  I will PM you the person's email.

[Fibonacci]

The phantom ban thing appears to be back, with another hiccup along with it.
I suspect something got fouled up with the registration for here when you upgraded. I get an error message when I try to direct message you that the recipient is not found, and someone named Iranon79 on Reddit got banned from the site after attempting to register more than once after not receiving any activation email. https://www.reddit.com/r/alphacentauri/comments/ws9ofb/alpha_centauri_2_forums/

Attempting to catch your attention here, and have e-mailed as well in hopes one of these goes through.

[Buster's Uncle]

We are experiencing technical difficulties w/ the forum's email.  See my PM, but there was a double loggin that fooled me, but he should be fine, now.  Please let him know.

[Fibonacci]

Seems to be all sorted out now, thank you again!

[Lionheart]

Hello, just wandered to this website, and imagine how amused I was to get this message:

"Sorry, you are banned from using this forum!
Eat THAT, Russian jerks! WE NEVER GREET YOU AS LIBERATORS!
This ban is not set to expire."

Kind of feels like insult to injury, considering where I am from...

(check the screenshot; posted using proxy server)

Can you please unban my IP? I am not sure about the IP ranges (which I guess is the reason for ban in the firstplace, as I have never visited the site previously), but what I can offer is that this IP address is mine and has been mine for 5+ years now (I dish out an extra 20$ for renting it, it is a white IP).

Pre-history:

(click to show/hide)

Initially I moved to this IP, because the communal grey IP's were blocked everywhere coz someone among the hundreds of users sitting on that same dynamic IP was sending out genitalia enlargement spam emails. Hilarious as it was at the time, it is not cool, when Google tells you that "we have detected suspicious activity on your network, so do captcha" again and again. This IP, that I am using currently, is clean and has been ever since that week when I took it upon myself to investigate the reason for getting spam bans out of the blue.

[Buster's Uncle]

I'll do it -and deal with the spambots on your line individually (and they do appear to be Russian)- but you have to tell me what IP...


However, we still won't greet them as liberators...