Referral spam associated with a suspicious domain, called Polarmarathon(.)com has been detected to increase the Google Analytics data on several websites. The suspicious retailer website is most likely a scam, since it has overpiced goods and has been reported as a high risk website by Scamadviser(.)com.
| Name | Polarmarathon(.)com Referral Spam |
| Type | Referral Spam |
| Short Description | The page redirects users to third-party websites. The spam is able to quickly corrupt Analytics data.. |
| Symptoms | The user may witness several different type of messages on his website. And if clicked on, he/she may witness redirects to suspicious websites. Other symptoms involve sudden spikes in the GA data. |
| Distribution Method | Spam Bots. |
| Detection Tool | Download Malware Removal Tool, to See If Your System Has Been Affected by malware |
| User Experience | Join our forum to discuss about Polarmarathon(.)com Referral Spam. |
Polarmarathon(.)com Referral Spam – Distribution
Such spam is usually distributed to drive hoax traffic to third-party websites. There are two main types of spam techniques used by spammers:
Ghost Referrer Spam
This type of spam is very efficient and it is the more preferred choice by spammers. The reason why it is so successful is because it uses the free HTTP connection to remain undetected just like its name suggests. Ben Travis, a researcher from viget.com has indicated that this type of spam allows the spam message to be sent by the software when it is not even on the website. It may affect different analytics and it may be so sophisticated that it may allow the spammer to choose what data to affect. The spam is also capable of making the data useless and corrupt. In case you notice a rapid spike in your Analytics data, it is most likely cause by a Ghost Referrer spam.
Web Crawlers Spam
Crawlers are also known as spiders because they crawl and analyze different website to spam. Once they have enough information the spammer may decide when the spam is to be sent out. Basically there may be two choices – whether the spam is going to be sent out massively on all the designated sites or site by site. The second choice is riskier because once flagged, the spammer will not be able to spam certain sites with this software. What is more, this particular type of spam may affect Google search results and cause your website a lot of headaches if spam is detected. Web Spiders usually target undeveloped and new websites and they quickly devaluate their data.
Polarmarathon(.)com – More about It
The website itself is highly believed to be a scamming website. When checked with Scamadviser, the service returned the following results:
The site displays winter clothing and is an online purchasing site. It has the IP address 198(.)56(.)183(.)14 originating from the US.
It is advisable to check whether the website is fully legitimate before making any purchases from it, since the products offered are very pricy and it may be a scamming site that may aim to collect financial data.
Stopping Polarmarathon(.)com Referral Spam
In order to remove this referral spam completely, make sure to follow the after-mentioned instructions:
Method 1: Filtering Polarmarathon(.)com Referral Spam Spam in Google Analytics:
Step 1: Click on the ‘Admin’ tab on your GA web page.
Step 2: Choose which ‘View’ is to be filtered and then click the ‘Filters’ button.
Step 3: Click on ‘New Filter’.
Step 4: Write a name, such as ‘Spam Referrals’.
Step 5: On Filter Type choose Custom Filter –>Exclude Filter –> Field: Campaign Source–> Filter Pattern. Then on the Pattern, enter the domain name – Polarmarathon(.)com Referral Spam Step 6: Select Views to Apply Filter.
Step 7: Save the filter, by clicking on the ‘Save’ button.
You are done! Congratulations!
Also, make sure you check out these several methods to help you further block out this referrer spam from Google Analytics:
https://sensorstechforum.com/exclude-all-hits-from-known-bots-and-spiders-in-google-analytics/
We have also researched the following methods to remove this spam:
Method 2: Block Polarmarathon(.)com Referral Spam from your server.
In case you have a server that is Apache HTTP Server, you may want to try the following commands to block Polarmarathon(.)com Referral Spam domains in the .htaccess file:
RewriteEngine on
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} ^http://.*Polarmarathon\.com/ [NC,OR]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} ^http://.*Polarmarathon \.net/ [NC,OR]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} ^http://.*Polarmarathon \.co/ [NC,OR]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} ^http://.*Polarmarathon \.org/ [NC,OR]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} ^http://.*Polarmarathon \.co.uk/ [NC,OR]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} ^http://.*Polarmarathon \.ru/ [NC,OR]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} ^http://.*Polarmarathon \.ly/ [NC,OR]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} ^http://.*Polarmarathon \.ly/ [NC,OR]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} ^http://.*Polarmarathon \-for\-website\.com/ [NC,OR]
RewriteRule ^(.*)$ – [F,L]
Also here is a web link to some spam URLs being blacklisted from other servers:
https://perishablepress.com/blacklist/ultimate-referrer-blacklist.txt
Disclaimer: This type of domain blocking in Apache servers has not yet been tested and it should be done by experienced professionals. Backup is always recommended.
Method 3 – Stop Polarmarathon(.)com Referral Spam Via WordPress
There is a method outlined by security researchers online that uses WordPress plugins to block referrer spams from sites. There are many plugins that help deal with referrer spam, simply do a google search. We have currently seen one particular plugin reported to work, called WP-Ban, but bear in mind that you may find an equally good or better. WP-Ban has the ability to block users based on their IP address and other information such as the URL, for example.
Also, in case you feel like you may have clicked and been redirected to one of the domains mentioned in the spam message, and you believe your system may be compromised, you should scan your computer with a particular anti-malware tool. Downloading such software will also make sure your computer is safe against any future intrusions as well.
Spy Hunter scanner will only detect the threat. If you want the threat to be automatically removed, you need to purchase the full version of the anti-malware tool.Find Out More About SpyHunter Anti-Malware Tool / How to Uninstall SpyHunter
Ventsislav Krastev
Ventsislav is a cybersecurity expert at SensorsTechForum since 2015. He has been researching, covering, helping victims with the latest malware infections plus testing and reviewing software and the newest tech developments. Having graduated Marketing as well, Ventsislav also has passion for learning new shifts and innovations in cybersecurity that become game changers. After studying Value Chain Management, Network Administration and Computer Administration of System Applications, he found his true calling within the cybersecrurity industry and is a strong believer in the education of every user towards online safety and security.
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