How do I block a user?

  • Unknown's avatar
    ambermageeportfolio · Member ·

    A user is harassing me in the comments. He found my blog after I blocked him from contacting me on a dating website and has been using the comments section to continue his reign of terror. How do I block/delete him?

    The blog I need help with is: (visible only to logged in users)

  • staff-doublebassd · Staff ·

    Hi there,

    There is no effective way to block subscribers, so it would be ineffective to provide the ability to manually unfollow or unsubscribe a user. A follower could create a new account, username, or e-mail address and refollow the blog. Since IP addresses are dynamic, blocking the address would not work either. Also, other users who are currently on the same IP address might inadvertently be blocked as well.

    However, I have a few recommendations: Make sure comment moderation is turned on Settings > Discussion so that all comments have to be approved. That way nothing will get through to the public side of your site without your approval.

    Alternatively, you can set your site to private and then invite only those that you desire to view your site.

    Feel free to let us know if you have any questions.

    Cheers,
    Darnell

  • Unknown's avatar
    auxclass · Member ·

    You can also contact your local, county, state or federal law enforcement agencies if you feel threatened, most of then now have cyber crime groups

  • Unknown's avatar
    ambermageeportfolio · Member ·

    Thanks for that, already have. Without a threat of violence they, “cannot do anything.”

    Will be deleting the site hole hog, but thank you for your suggestions!

  • Unknown's avatar
    auxclass · Member ·

    If you set it to private as you have now, only those you let in can post a comment and you can delete any user you don’t want. In the past the staff have said they would remove subscribers from a Private site if the owner ask.

    Just seems a shame to delete a site since the URL is gone forever and can never be used again

  • Unknown's avatar
    timethief · Member ·

    So he submits comments. That’s no problem. Set up comment moderation and don’t approve them and blacklist his comments.

    This page > Settings > Discussion is where you set up defaults for comments.
    http://en.support.wordpress.com/settings/discussion-settings/
    http://en.support.wordpress.com/settings/discussion-settings/#comment-moderation
    See here for comment blacklisting http://en.support.wordpress.com/settings/discussion-settings/#comment-blacklist

    Also, do not put IP addresses in the blacklist. IP addresses are no longer unique, and you might end up blocking legitimate visitors. In fact for over a decade only about 30% of us have IPs that trace back to any individual computer. Also, all they would have to do is go to a wi-fi hot spot, or connect via a different ISP and they could get around that.

  • Unknown's avatar
    ambermageeportfolio · Member ·

    You’re right, that’s no problem. He stalked me from one site to another to continue to harass me because I rejected him, but that’s no problem.

    Thanks for that little piece of help.

  • Unknown's avatar
    timethief · Member ·

    You’re welcome. Stalking is a term that’s tossed about a lot these days online. Suffice to say that if you are referring to actual criminal stalking, which most people are not referring to, and you fear that this person will locate you and physically harm you, then you call the police.

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