Best Spam Detection APIs: Akismet Alternatives

Spam is a significant issue that can clutter your comment sections, forums, and email inboxes, disrupting communication and making your online platforms difficult to use. Managing this spam is crucial for maintaining the integrity and usability of your websites and blogs. While Akismet has been a popular solution, several powerful alternatives have emerged, offering advanced features and customization options. This article explores the best spam detection APIs available today as Akismet alternatives, highlighting their capabilities and benefits to help you effectively manage and reduce spam.

1. FortGuard - Spam Detection API

We have been using ML Spam Detection Tools such as Akismet in our main product Hyvor Talk. But with time, we realized that spam detection using ML is a tad less accurate and there is a much better way using Large Language Models (LLMs). Therefore, we were hunting for a spam detection API to meet our requirements. Unfortunately, we could not find any. Hence we started building our own spam detection API.

And that is how Fortguard comes to you carefully designed by us, HYVOR.

FortGuard stands out as a state-of-the-art spam detection API designed for various applications, including commenting systems, forums, and email clients. Unlike many spam detection services that provide a simple binary result—spam or not—FortGuard offers a more nuanced approach with multiple data points about content and IP addresses. This allows users to tailor the spam detection process to their specific needs.

Here are the features that Fortguard offers you.

Key Features of FortGuard:

• Advanced Content Spam Detection - Human-like accuracy: FortGuard utilizes Large Language Models (LLMs) such as OpenAI's GPT-3.5 and GPT-4 for content analysis. These models are trained on vast amounts of data, enabling them to understand the context of content and accurately detect spam. This capability is particularly useful for differentiating spam and legitimate content in various contexts. This ensures human-like accuracy, with great context awareness.

• Language Detection & Sentiment Analysis: Fortguard’s API detects the language and possible sentiments of the content, in the same API call. You can configure the API to return additional data such as language detection and sentiment analysis. This enables more sophisticated spam detection strategies and allows for fine-tuned control over what is considered spam. In other words, it filters out content that is not in the language you support or to filter out negative content.

• IP Geolocation: FortGuard’s IP check provides comprehensive data about IP addresses, helping to identify and block spammy IPs. This includes data on whether an IP is associated with spam activity, proxies, VPNs, or known abusers.

• Privacy-Focused: FortGuard prioritizes user privacy. It does not log or store any data sent to its API, ensuring that user information remains confidential. There are no tracking scripts, and only essential cookies are used for login purposes.

  FortGuard is a privacy-focused service. Briefly, We

  • do not log any data that you send to our content check API.

  • do not store any IP addresses that you send to our IP check API.

  • do not sell your personal data to third parties.

  • do not track you when using our websites

    • No analytics or any other tracking scripts

    • Only essential (login) cookies

• Analytics: You can easily track the usage of your API key in the Console. See API logs with metadata such as response time, status code, and more. You can set maximum monthly usage limits to prevent unexpected bills.

Diving into Fortguard furthermore, it has 3 API endpoints.

API Endpoints:

1. Content Check (/check/content): Analyzes a piece of content for spam and can return additional data points like language and sentiment.

For example, here is a request.

1{
2    "model": "gpt-3.5",
3    "context": "10 Healthy Habits to Boost Your Productivity",
4    "content": "Click the link in my profile!",
5    "language_detection": false,
6    "sentiment_analysis": false,
7    "sentiments": ['positive', 'negative', 'neutral'],
8}
9

Here is its response.

1{
2    "spam_score": 5,
3    "language_code": null,
4    "sentiments": [],
5}
6

2. IP Check (/check/ip): Provides detailed information about an IP address to detect potential spam sources.

For example, here is a request.

1{
2    "ip": "141.98.215.233"
3}

And its response.

 1{
 2    "ip": "141.98.215.233",
 3    "is_bogon": false,
 4    "is_mobile": false,
 5    "is_datacenter": true,
 6    "is_tor": false,
 7    "is_proxy": false,
 8    "is_vpn": false,
 9    "is_abuser": true,
10    "location": {
11        "continent": "AS",
12        "country": "Philippines",
13        "country_code": "PH",
14        "state": "",
15        "city": "Manila",
16        "latitude": 14.6042,
17        "longitude": 120.9822,
18        "zip": "",
19        "timezone": "Asia/Manila",
20        "local_time": "2023-11-06T15:30:22+08:00",
21        "local_time_unix": 1699255822,
22        "is_dst": false
23    },
24    "company": {
25        "name": "ESTNOC-GLOBAL",
26        "domain": "estnoc.ee",
27        "type": "business",
28        "network": "141.98.215.0 - 141.98.215.255",
29    },
30    "datacenter": {
31        "datacenter": "Shock Hosting LLC",
32        "domain": "shockhosting.net",
33        "network": "141.98.212.0 - 141.98.215.255"
34    },
35    "asn": {
36        "asn": 206804,
37        "route": "141.98.215.0/24",
38        "descr": "ESTNOC-GLOBAL, EE",
39        "country": "ee",
40        "active": true,
41        "org": "EstNOC OY",
42        "domain": "www.estnoc.ee",
43        "type": "hosting",
44        "created": "2016-11-03",
45        "updated": "2023-10-13",
46        "rir": "ripe",
47    }
48}
49

3. All Check (/check): Combines both content and IP checks in a single request for comprehensive spam detection.

For example, here is a request and its response.

 1// request
 2{
 3    "content": {}, // content endpoint input
 4    "ip": {} // ip endpoint input
 5}
 6
 7// response
 8{
 9    "content": {}, // content endpoint output
10    "ip": {} // ip endpoint output
11}

FortGuard’s approach of providing detailed insights rather than simple binary results makes it a powerful tool for users seeking a flexible and privacy-conscious spam detection solution.

2. OOPspam

OOPSpam offers a powerful spam detection API that integrates seamlessly with various platforms, including blogs, forums, and email services. By analyzing multiple factors such as content, metadata, and user behavior, OOPSpam can effectively distinguish between legitimate messages and spam. This comprehensive approach makes it a reliable solution for preventing unwanted and potentially harmful content from disrupting your online services.

Key Features of OOPSpam

• Machine Learning-Powered Detection: OOPSpam utilizes advanced machine learning models to analyze and classify content, continuously adapting to new spam tactics.

• Multi-Factor Analysis: The API considers various factors beyond content, including metadata and user behavior, for a holistic approach to spam detection.

• Customizable Filtering: Users can set spam thresholds, enable or disable certain analyses, and adjust sensitivity levels to tailor the spam detection process to their needs.

• Real-Time Detection: OOPSpam offers real-time spam detection, ensuring immediate identification and filtering of spam.

• Security and Privacy: OOPSpam ensures all data is handled securely, maintaining user confidentiality without logging or storing sensitive information.

• Integration with Popular Platforms: Easy integration with popular CMS and email services, including WordPress and Drupal, ensures robust spam protection without significant development overhead.

Adding OOPSpam into your platform, you can enhance security, improve user experience, and ensure that your online services run smoothly and efficiently.

3. CleanTalk

CleanTalk has established itself as a robust spam detection service, offering cloud-based protection for a variety of online platforms. This versatile solution is designed to safeguard comments, registrations, orders, and more from spam, making it an excellent choice for webmasters looking to maintain the integrity and security of their websites.

Key Features of CleanTalk:

• Comprehensive Spam Protection: CleanTalk covers multiple types of forms and submissions, including comments, registration forms, and order forms, making it a versatile solution.

• Real-Time Email Validation: The service checks email addresses for validity in real time to prevent spam registrations, enhancing the overall security of your platform.

• Detailed Analytics: CleanTalk provides detailed reports and statistics about spam activity on your site, giving you insights into the nature and frequency of spam attacks.

By integrating CleanTalk, you can effectively filter out unwanted spam, ensuring a smooth and secure experience for your users while protecting your website’s reputation and functionality.

4. SpamAssassin

Apache SpamAssassin is an open-source spam filtering platform that is widely used for email spam detection. SpamAssassin is accessible to a wide range of users, from individual developers to large enterprises, providing a highly customizable solution that can be tailored to meet specific needs.

This tool employs a diverse array of spam detection techniques, including text analysis, Bayesian filtering, DNS blocklists, and collaborative filtering databases. This multifaceted approach ensures high accuracy in identifying spam, making it one of the most reliable tools for maintaining clean and secure email communications.

Key Features of SpamAssassin:

• Highly Customizable: SpamAssassin allows users to tailor the spam detection rules and configurations to suit their specific needs, offering a high degree of flexibility.

• Open-Source: Being open-source, SpamAssassin is free to use and modify, making it accessible for various applications and allowing for community-driven improvements.

• Comprehensive Filtering Techniques: SpamAssassin utilizes multiple methods to detect spam, ensuring high accuracy and adaptability to different types of spam.

Conclusion

Choosing the right spam detection API depends on your specific needs and the context in which you are operating. While Akismet is a reliable choice for many, alternatives like FortGuard, OOPspam, CleanTalk, and SpamAssassin offer advanced features and flexibility that can be particularly beneficial for developers seeking detailed insights and customizable spam detection processes. CleanTalk, SpamAssassin, and Mailgun also provide robust spam detection capabilities suitable for various applications. As the digital landscape continues to evolve, leveraging advanced spam detection APIs like FortGuard can significantly enhance the security and user experience of your online platform.

By evaluating these options and considering their unique features and benefits, you can select the most appropriate spam detection solution to protect your online presence and ensure a smooth, spam-free experience for your users.