PluginScout

Blackhole for Bad Bots — WordPress Anti-Spam Plugin

by Jeff Starr · WordPress.org page · Website

v3.8.4 Tested up to WP 7.1 PHP 5.6.20+

Blackhole for Bad Bots has 30,000+ active installs on WordPress.org and 978,884 downloads all time. We have tracked it since September 4, 2026; download trends appear after 30 days of data. The last update was on August 21, 2026, tested up to WordPress 7.1.

Blackhole for Bad Bots at a glance

Active installs
30,000+
Total downloads
978,884
Downloads, last 30 days
–
available after 30 days of tracking
30-day growth
–
tracking since September 4, 2026

Is Blackhole for Bad Bots well maintained?

Support threads resolved
1 of 1
recent threads on the WordPress.org support forum
WordPress compatibility
Current
tested up to WordPress 7.1, the current release is 7.1
One-star reviews
4%
6 of 148 reviews on WordPress.org

Features

The feature list from the plugin's own readme on WordPress.org, trimmed to the essentials.

  • Easy to set up
  • Squeaky clean code
  • Focused and modular
  • Lightweight, fast and flexible
  • Built with the WordPress API
  • Works with other security plugins
  • Easy to reset the list of bad bots
  • Easy to delete any bot from the list
  • Regularly updated and “future proof”
  • Blackhole link includes “nofollow” attribute
  • Plugin options configurable via settings screen
  • Works silently behind the scenes to protect your site

Blackhole for Bad Bots reviews and ratings

148 reviews on WordPress.org, with the most recent ones as their authors posted them.

All reviews
4.7 out of 5

148 reviews

5★
134
4★
3
3★
4
2★
1
1★
6

  • Cloudflare Compatibility

    Plug in has many problems with Cloudflare

    athinaok

  • Does nothing!

    n/a

    ron441241

  • Great plugin

    Hi. It seems to be doing its job. I am happy with it. Thanks :-) [Blackhole for Bad Bots]

    Krzysztof

  • Be very careful …

    I appreciate the protection Blackhole for Badbots has given me for a couple of years, but suddenly I'm getting emails from Google saying their crawlers have been blocked and, within two days, my ranking has plummeted.I know the issue is the caching, and there are posts online about this for when the plugin's used alongside Siteground's Optimizer, but after obeying the instructions (there's only one type of caching you're supposed to use, apparently), after a lull of a week or so and getting a Google validation fix confirmation, I'm getting the Google emails again. Nothing's changed in that time?I'm obeying the instructions, but still Google is being blocked? Why on earth would it block Google? Yes, I could stop using all caching, but then my site gets slower and that will also affect my ranking.I've had to deactivate the plugin, and I won't be using it again. I'm hoping my Google ranking quickly recovers, as I spotted the drop fairly quickly. This will cost me money …

    wordwiseweb

  • Beware!

    More than 6 months after deletion its still generating trash pages on Google Search Console(thousands). Even after cleaning everything. Still generating...

    silversky99

  • Together with BBQ Firewall the best plugin for WordPress security!

    Together with BBQ Firewall the best plugin for WordPress security!

    nmrockswp

Where Blackhole for Bad Bots ranks on WordPress.org

The rankings we track that Blackhole for Bad Bots appears in, and how its position changed over 30 days.

Ranking WordPress.org placement Position 30 days
Best Anti-Spam Plugins #19 by tag, #33 in search #20 –
Best Security Plugins #53 by tag, not in search #84 –

Blackhole for Bad Bots alternatives

Plugins that solve the same problem, ranked by how closely they overlap with Blackhole for Bad Bots.

All Blackhole for Bad Bots alternatives

Details

Blackhole is a WordPress security plugin that detects and traps bad bots in a virtual black hole, where they are denied access to your entire site.

The full description, screenshots and every review live on the WordPress.org page.

Rankings Blackhole for Bad Bots competes in

Tags

  • anti-spam
  • blackhole
  • bots
  • honeypot
  • security

More from Jeff Starr

Version
3.8.4
Last updated
Aug 21, 2026
First published
Feb 18, 2016
Requires WordPress
4.7
Tested up to
7.1
Requires PHP
5.6.20
Pricing
Free on WordPress.org

Blackhole for Bad Bots FAQ

What does Blackhole for Bad Bots do?

According to its WordPress.org readme, Blackhole for Bad Bots offers Easy to set up, Squeaky clean code, Focused and modular, Lightweight, fast and flexible and Built with the WordPress API.

How many active installs does Blackhole for Bad Bots have?

WordPress.org reports 30,000+ active installs for Blackhole for Bad Bots as of September 7, 2026.

Is Blackhole for Bad Bots still maintained?

Yes. The last release was on August 21, 2026 and it is tested up to WordPress 7.1.

Does Blackhole for Bad Bots have good support?

On the WordPress.org forum, 1 of 1 recent support threads for Blackhole for Bad Bots are marked resolved. That is the developer's free support; a paid version usually comes with its own channel.

Is Blackhole for Bad Bots free?

Blackhole for Bad Bots is free to install from WordPress.org. Many plugins also sell a paid version or add-ons.

Where does Blackhole for Bad Bots rank among Anti-Spam Plugins?

Blackhole for Bad Bots is #20 in the WordPress.org Anti-Spam Plugins ranking.