# Honeypot channel against spam

> A honeypot channel for your Discord bot: spam bots that post there are kicked or banned and their recent messages are deleted across the server. Free with Ganyu.

Canonical: https://ganyu.fr/en/wiki/salon-piege
Last updated: 2026-10-26

A honeypot channel is a decoy that members ignore, because a pinned warning tells them not to post there. Spam bots post in every channel they find. Ganyu sanctions them at once, without waiting for a moderator.

## How it works

The module creates a text channel (or uses an existing one), publishes a warning in it, and watches every message sent there. Any author who is not exempt is sanctioned at once, then their recent messages are deleted across the server.

- The channel is visible and writable to all members, with read history.
- The channel is moved to the top of the channel list, where spam bots often post first.
- The module is off by default: until you turn it on, traps sanction nobody.

## Sanctions and exemptions

Two sanctions are possible: a kick (softban, a ban followed by an immediate unban) and a ban. The author's recent messages are deleted across the server for 1 hour, 24 hours (default) or 7 days, depending on the trap setting.

Staff is never sanctioned: anyone with Administrator, Manage Server, Manage Messages, Kick Members or Ban Members is spared. You can add up to 25 exempt roles.

Tip: If the unban of a softban fails, the member stays banned: unban them by hand from the server's bans.

## Managing traps

A server can have up to 5 traps. Each one has its own settings: sanction, message deletion window and warning message. In your custom message, the token {count} is replaced by the number of catches.

Deleting a trap leaves the channel in place, but nobody is sanctioned there any more. Catches already recorded stay in the catch log until the 90-day purge. You can also republish the warning if it was deleted.

## Statistics and history

The dashboard shows the catches day by day over the last 30 days, with the sanctions that failed. The catch log is kept for 90 days.

## Frequently asked questions

### Can a member who reads the warning be sanctioned?

No. A member who reads the warning has no reason to post in the channel. Staff and exempt roles are never sanctioned, even if they post in the trap.

### Which permissions does the bot need?

It must be able to ban members (softban also uses a ban), manage messages to delete recent messages, and read and post in the trap channel.

### How many traps can I create?

Five per server. Beyond that, creation is refused until a trap is deleted.

## Sources and official documentation

- [Discord Developer Docs: Permissions](https://discord.com/developers/docs/topics/permissions)
- [Discord Developer Docs: Auto Moderation](https://discord.com/developers/docs/resources/auto-moderation)

## Related

- [The Ganyu wiki](https://ganyu.fr/en/wiki.md)
- [Moderation & Automod](https://ganyu.fr/en/wiki/moderation.md)
- [Support tickets](https://ganyu.fr/en/wiki/tickets.md)
- [Giveaways](https://ganyu.fr/en/wiki/giveaways.md)
- [Automatic roles & welcome](https://ganyu.fr/en/wiki/roles-automatiques.md)
- [Invite tracking](https://ganyu.fr/en/wiki/invitations.md)
- [Temporary voice channels](https://ganyu.fr/en/wiki/vocaux-temporaires.md)
- [Server cloning and templates](https://ganyu.fr/en/wiki/clonage-serveur.md)