
No other user data is collected by this plugin. When bad bots fall into the trap, their IP address, user agent, and other request data are stored in the WP database. User Data: This plugin automatically blocks bad bots. For a complete list of whitelisted bots, visit the Help tab in the plugin settings (under “Whitelist Settings”).


This list can be customized in the plugin settings.
#Vst blackhole full#
They always are allowed full access to your site, even if they disobey your robots.txt rules. These search engines (and all of their myriad variations) are whitelisted via user agent.
#Vst blackhole pro#
Not using WordPress? Check out the standalone PHP version of Blackhole!Ĭheck out Blackhole Pro and level up with advanced features!īy default, this plugin does NOT block any of the major search engines (user agents): htaccess rulesīlackhole for Bad Bots protects your site against bad bots, spammers, scrapers, scanners, and other automated threats. One-click restore the plugin default options.Customize the message displayed to bad bots 😉.Provides setting to whitelist any IP addresses.Complete inline documentation via the Help tab.Email alerts with WHOIS lookup for blocked bots.Focused on flexibility, performance, and security.Whitelists all major search engines to never block.Works silently behind the scenes to protect your site.Plugin options configurable via settings screen.Blackhole link includes “nofollow” attribute.Using a caching plugin? Check out the Installation notes for important info. The best part is that the Blackhole only affects bad bots: human users never see the hidden link, and good bots obey the robots rules in the first place. Failure to comply results in immediate banishment.

I call it the “one-strike” rule: bots have one chance to obey your site’s robots.txt rule. Once trapped, bad bots are denied further access to your WordPress site. Bots that then ignore or disobey your robots rules will crawl the link and fall into the trap. You then add a line to your robots.txt file that forbids all bots from following the hidden link. The Blackhole plugin helps to stop bad bots and save precious resources for legit visitors.įirst the plugin adds a hidden trigger link to the footer of your pages. They do all sorts of nasty stuff and waste server resources. Add your own virtual black hole trap for bad bots.īad bots are the worst.
