How it decides
Most link filters work from a blocklist of known-bad domains, which is always one step behind — a scam domain is registered, used for a day, and abandoned before anyone reports it.
ScoutBot works the other way round. You list the websites your server
expects to see, and anything else is flagged when it is posted. Subdomains of
an approved website are approved too, so listing
example.com also covers docs.example.com.
Approved websites
Enter the domains users are allowed to share links from, separated by commas or new lines. Start with your own site, your documentation, and the tools your community genuinely uses.
The plugin does nothing while this list is empty, which is deliberate — an empty allowlist would otherwise mean "flag every link ever posted", and that is nobody's intent on a fresh install.
Channel
Where flag messages are posted. A private moderator channel is the right choice, for the same reason as on the Security page: the alert names the member and quotes their message.
The plugin also needs this set to do anything. A server with the switch on, domains listed, and no channel selected is a server where nothing happens.
What an alert contains
The member who posted, the channel they posted in, the text of the message, and a jump link straight to it — so a moderator can read the context and act without hunting for the message.
Alert role
Optionally mention a role when a link is flagged. Worth reserving for servers where somebody is genuinely watching; on a busy server this can be a lot of pings.
Action
What happens to a flagged link beyond the alert. Acting automatically is a Pro feature; free servers get the alert.
Exceptions
Three groups are never checked, and one is optional:
- The server owner, always.
- Whitelisted members, by user ID.
- Discord's own links and Tenor GIFs, always. Message jump links and reaction GIFs are not something anyone wants alerts about.
- Your moderators, optionally. Switch this on and anyone holding one of the roles selected under Moderators on the Security page is skipped. That is the same list, not a copy of it — so there is one thing to maintain.
Honest scope
Discord's own AutoMod includes suspicious-link blocking and it is free for every server. If basic blocking is all you need, use it. This plugin earns its place when you want an allowlist you control, alerts routed to a channel with jump links, and the same exemptions the rest of ScoutBot uses.