[wp-trac] [WordPress Trac] #65012: Fix: Register Akismet Anti-Spam as a connector

[WordPress Trac]

#65012: Fix: Register Akismet Anti-Spam as a connector
--------------------------------------+-------------------------------
 Reporter:  jorgefilipecosta          |       Owner:  jorgefilipecosta
     Type:  feature request           |      Status:  reopened
 Priority:  normal                    |   Milestone:  7.0
Component:  Plugins                   |     Version:
 Severity:  normal                    |  Resolution:
 Keywords:  has-patch has-unit-tests  |     Focuses:
--------------------------------------+-------------------------------

Comment (by jorgefilipecosta):

 Replying to [comment:45 peterwilsoncc]:

 > Replying to [comment:41 matveb]:

 > > I'm a bit confused about the outcome. I agree, at this late stage, the
 connector should not show up when the plugin is not present in the WP
 install, but it should be displayed when it is, even if it's not
 activated.

 > >

 > > It's important to position connectors as not being exclusively for AI.
 Looking beyond, the connectors UI should show available connectors from
 any installed plugin, regardless of whether they are activated. Given
 Akismet is bundled by default, it should show up if the file is present
 for 7.0. It'd be odd to have the plugin present in plugins but not in
 connectors. For the next cycle, this should be formalized in plugin
 headers or some other broader mechanism.

 >

 >

 > Mobile, jetlgged, flight delays. Excuse typos

 >

 >

 > The Akismet team have added a connector to their plugin for the next
 release (mentioned in core-ai channel)

 >

 > An akismet API entry field will show up once the plugin is active and
 needed. I'm not sure what happened when both the plugin and core were
 registered the connectors

 >

 Hi @peterwilsoncc, I tried to address this point earlier in [comment:25].
 What we had works well with the latest released version of Akismet on the
 wp.org repo. The Akismet developers are aware of what is happening in core
 and will make sure things continue to work well together in future
 releases, independently of what is on the development branch now. It is
 totally fine for plugins to remove core registration and enhance it at the
 plugin level; AI providers can also do the same if, for example, they want
 to include credit information, etc.

 Hi @jorbin,

 > How does that help users? If anything it's going to create confusion
 since they may think that by having entered the key on the connectors
 screen they have activated akismet.

 I tried to address this point earlier in [comment:25]:

 > That's a good point that is worth addressing. The UI doesn't actually
 allow setting a key without activating the plugin first. What it does is
 let users activate the plugin directly from the connectors screen, without
 needing to navigate to the plugins screen, and then provide the key right
 away without any page reloads. So by the time the key is set, the plugin
 is already active.

 So this shouldn't create confusion. The user can activate the plugin and
 provide a key directly from the connectors screen, without any page
 reloads or needing to visit a separate settings page. If users think
 they've activated Akismet, they're correct: everything is ready to use,
 and the UI accurately reflects that.

 It's possible to test this flow on Playground:
 https://playground.wordpress.net/wordpress.html?pr=11460 (note: Akismet
 needs to be installed first in the Playground PR reviewer, as it does not
 bundle Akismet the way normal core does). I also recorded a
 [https://make.wordpress.org/core/files/2026/04/akismet-full-flow.mov video
 with the full flow].

 > Aditionally, the connectors screen should be about reusable connections.
 Besides akismet, which plugins currently make use of this key?

 My understanding is that the connectors screen is not exclusively about
 reusable connections. It is a central place that supports a set of common
 patterns for connecting to third-party services, even if a connection is
 only used by a single plugin. That said, in the specific case of Akismet,
 the key could actually be used by many third-party plugins, such as
 [https://lifterlms.com/blog/block-spam-increase-security/ LifterLMS],
 [https://wpmanageninja.com/docs/fluent-form/integrations-available-in-wp-
 fluent-form/wp-fluent-forms-akismet-integration/ Fluent Forms],
 [https://help.formassembly.com/help/464341-akismet-spam-filter Form
 Assembly], [https://formidableforms.com/knowledgebase/add-spam-protection
 /#kb-akismet Formidable Forms],
 [https://givewp.com/documentation/core/settings/advanced/akismet-spam-
 protection GiveWP], and some other services.

-- 
Ticket URL: <https://core.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/65012#comment:47>
WordPress Trac <https://core.trac.wordpress.org/>
WordPress publishing platform