Spammy Data Enrichment requesting Deletion according to GDPR

[jethrojones]

I've been getting some spammy-looking form submissions, and then they started asking for deletion. 

Usually spammy stuff isn't a big deal because I don't think anyone is on the other end. 

But perhaps this is another way to do some phishing schemes or some other deceitful behavior. Attached is the screenshot of the requests. Look at the names! 

I know I can delete automatically with a confirmation email, but it seems strange that they are coming in this way. Should I be worried about this?

[karstenkoehler · Accepted solution]

Hi @jethrojones,

This is a general wave of spam affecting a lot of portals at the moment and form submissions in general, it's not specific to deletion requests. I haven't seen anything bad come from these submissions yet besides the fact that they're taking up screen space.

If you enable the recent AI gibberish detection product update (settings -> product updates) and if you have HubSpot AI enabled in general (requirement for the beta), that should help.

Best regards!

[EricSwain]

@jethrojones we just received one of those. Do you know how contacts make that request? We got an automated email from HubSpot alerting us to the request but aren't sure how that message was triggered.

Thanks,

Eric

[SealaB]

Hi @EricSwain, welcome to HubSpot Community! 
 

To add to @karstenkoehler’s helpful advice – in many cases, these kinds of “requests” are triggered by bots interacting with standard HubSpot forms on your website.

Bots often scan for any open input fields and automatically submit text related to “GDPR deletion,” data removal, or generic enrichment content. 
The “automated email” you received is very likely the standard Form submission notification generated when that form is successfully submitted.

Review the email you received and check whether it’s a New submission notification for a specific form. This will typically list the form name and the submitted values.

Turn on CAPTCHA for your forms to help block bot submissions before they create or update contacts.

If appropriate for your business, toggle on Block free email providers or Block specific email domains in the form’s submission settings to reduce low‑quality/spam submissions.

Make sure AI‑powered spam/gibberish detection is enabled if available, so HubSpot can automatically flag and filter out obvious spam submissions.

In HubSpot, you can review and manage form submissions that HubSpot has marked as spam on the spam submissions index, and either release legitimate ones or permanently delete the spam entries. This helps keep your CRM and automations clean.

For more detail, here’s a Knowledge Base resource that walks through preventing spam form submissions and the available protection options in HubSpot.

Hope this helps!

[jethrojones]

That's good to know @karstenkoehler! I don't see that in my product updates when I search for it. 

[karstenkoehler · Accepted solution]

@jethrojones there you go:

https://app-eu1.hubspot.com/l/product-updates/?rollout=180910

https://app-eu1.hubspot.com/l/product-updates/?rollout=224926

[karstenkoehler · Accepted solution]

Hi @jethrojones,

This is a general wave of spam affecting a lot of portals at the moment and form submissions in general, it's not specific to deletion requests. I haven't seen anything bad come from these submissions yet besides the fact that they're taking up screen space.

If you enable the recent AI gibberish detection product update (settings -> product updates) and if you have HubSpot AI enabled in general (requirement for the beta), that should help.

Best regards!