Fake clone of the site

[tactictoe]

Sorry to answer so late.

Algorithm to eliminate this type of user account creation. Harsh to explain...
Let's take a case:

One would like to create multiple account to boost vote, or whatsoever reason beyond his/her agenda.
The server detect similarity of account creation and it pop up on the Admin screen to attract his/her attention. Then decision is made by the Admin to delete or not the account.

A counter measure to avoid one user to create multiple account. And if for genuine reason, as in forgot password or user name, help the person in distress by providing the lost information. Something like that.

e.g. : Let's pretend I forgot my user name, then try to create a new one as in tictac or tactictoe2016. It's detected and the admin propose me to merge my new account to the old one.

It will certainly not catch prepared and determined user to do it, but the one creating it on the spot or the one who lost it's account and does not know how to ask for help.

That is what I meant.
I don't know if it is possible to implement easily or even it could be done in Java at a server level. I am NOT that good in Java. I know how to do it with Robots for analysing human behaviour or reaction. e.g. a sensor capturing Eyes iris movement can analyse human emotion.Very primitive but works. Neural network (experimental for now) is key to future algorithm analysing human behaviour. What would replace this sensor in Java? No clue. May be a table 'a la brute force' of possible reaction that an algorithm could analyse?
IP proximity detection is not enough these days, IP/MAC Address can be faked/spoofed and eventually re-linked to a proxy feeding value from different origin looking/acting very genuinely. Just a simulation taken for real information by a server, really. Making analyse very complicate at the least painful with eventual time consumption. As time sometime is the essence alternative solutions should be considered.

BTW, I was just curious. The talent of people maintaining and updating code for this site triggered my question. You guys might have done it.

Have a nice day

[SYSTEM]

Does TPFC has measure now for this kind of input now in 2016?

Yes, we do have measures.

First, on registration we ask a question about TPFC (for example, Andrew Lee's last name). It blocks CAPTCHA solving companies from answering the questions: those companies go for volume, and therefore they don't bother with questions that can't be answered with very quick searches in Wikipedia. See here for more information: http://www.portablefreeware.com/forums/ ... 149#p75149

Second, a moderator needs to approve the first post of every member. Therefore even if a determined spammer makes it through the registration question, the moderators will reject their post and ban them.

[webfork]

Algorithm to eliminate this type of user account creation.

SYSTEM already covered the current process well but ...

... talent of people maintaining and updating code for this site triggered my question. You guys might have done it.

Although we have one or two other tricks on the back-end to help manage this situation, I can't imagine more would hurt.

Anyway, I am not a developer and don't do much with this area but maybe Andrew can derive something.

Thanks

[Andrew Lee]

I don't know if it is possible to implement easily or even it could be done in Java at a server level. I am NOT that good in Java. I know how to do it with Robots for analysing human behaviour or reaction. e.g. a sensor capturing Eyes iris movement can analyse human emotion.Very primitive but works. Neural network (experimental for now) is key to future algorithm analysing human behaviour. What would replace this sensor in Java? No clue. May be a table 'a la brute force' of possible reaction that an algorithm could analyse?

It's not Java, but PHP, which is the language behind both TPFC and phpBB (the forum software).

Although the ideas are great, I think it will be non-trivial to implement them. Implementing them will involve delving into the depths of phpBB. Not to mention one has to deal with code conflicts when applying phpBB updates.

[tactictoe]

Well thank you all for the input. You did answer all the aspects of my curious question and more. So thank you all again.