Akismet is the very best plugin to disable spam comments and trackbacks on a WordPress website. When a comment field is open to the public, there will be spam. If the site gains some attention, the number of spam increases. If a site becomes really popular, there is so much spam that it will be impossible to manage them manually. But there is a great plugin, something called Akismet that can be used to fight back spam.
Akismet is really good. It uses the data gathered from millions of WordPress sites out there. Using this information, spam is blocked and prevented from showing up below the posts. It is just really effective. This plugin comes pre-packed with new WordPress installations. The only thing that we need to do is activate the plugin. However, this plugin is not activated with a single click of the Activate link. An API key is required for it to be activated.
So, to enable Akismet for the very first time, we need to sign up to and get an API key which is issued for free or for a payment. There is an optional donation step as well.
Here’s how to get Akismet for WordPress:
- In WordPress administration, access Plugins > Installed Plugins.
- Activate the plugin titled Akismet by pressing on the link.
- Click on the button of Activate your Akismet account Almost done – activate your account and say goodbye to comment spam message on top.
- Click on the registering button in the next step and it will open the Akismet sign-up page.
- Sign up by pressing the GET AN AKISMET API KEY
- Choose the plan that fits you—Personal, Business or Enterprise. Personal is for free.
- Drag the payment slider to the amount you want to donate. Drag it to $0.00/yr if you do not prefer to donate at this time.
- Enter your details and click Continue and verify your email.
- At the end, you will get an Akismet API key that looks something like 4752235g20da. You’ll also get an email with it.
- Copy and paste the API key back in WordPress where it says Manually enter an API key.
Now this powerful spam fighting feature is added to the site. We can access the spam statistics from the Installed plugins page by clicking on the Settings link under Akismet. There’s also a link to the page to see summaries of spam.
Additional configurations can also be made from there page. We can choose how spam is handled—either by putting them in the spam folder for 15 days or by silently discarding them. Overall, when this plugin is there, spam fighting will be that much manageable.