Whenever you visit some websites, you’ve likely seen something referred to as CAPTCHA. Many websites can be found using CAPTCHA, and this is something that stands for “Completely Automatic Public Turing Test to tell Computers and Humans Apart,” and it is a system that helps to weed out bots that can both harvest emails and inject various forms of spam onto a website.
The best way to understand CAPTCHA is to first understand all of the different incentive that spammers have when it comes to both creating and using different input systems that are automated.
Spam is generally defined as any input or interaction that is unwarranted or unwanted on a website, email etc., whether its intent is malicious or for the sole benefit of the spammer themselves.
The following are typically considered to be incentives to spam: Advertising on a scale that is massive in nature; Being able to manipulate various online voting systems; Creating some sort of an unfair advantage; Destroying or otherwise vandalizing the overall integrity of a website and a few more.
Spam. A lot of it
Image source: Zsolt
All of the aforementioned incentives, as well as many others, can lead to many different gains for spammers who decide to utilize them. When the process is automated, this will make things even better for them, especially since massive speed and efficiency will be able to come into play as a result.
Any individual who runs a website can tell you right away that this is not only a major business, but it is also a major problem at the same time as well. One extremely popular spam killer known as Akismet holds the distinction of being able to catch well over 18 million spam comments every single day, as well as more than 20 billion throughout its entire existence.
Spammers won’t stop their activities if you simply ask them nicely to do so – that’s obviously a given. However, it’s entirely possible for their greed to be used against them. Using an automated system may be able to help increase profits, but they certainly are not without their own weaknesses.
CAPTCHA and User Experience
User Workflow Can Be Interrupted
Users are always focused on accomplishing one simple step, and when another obstacle is placed in front of them, it can make things irritating. This is definitely the case with something such as a CAPTCHA form.
In fact, even versions that are better and more updated can be a little too difficult to read at times. One of the more well-known CAPTCHA generators in existence is known as ReCAPTCHA, in which initially users were required to decipher various forms of scanned texts from old books, which then allowed the books to become more digitized as a result.
Perhaps the biggest advantage of this is that the text is made up of actual words rather than just random letters and numbers; however, even with perfect vision, sometimes these actual words can be rather difficult to make out.
Luckily, reCAPTCHA has received an update and is now easier to verify the form, and less annoying.
They’re an unfortunate burden on regular users
All in all, CAPTCHAs essentially force individuals to complete mundane tasks due to issues that are technically far beyond their control, which is something that really is not their fault in any way, shape, or form.
CAPTCHA alternatives
Honeypots
These are generally defined as traps that are set up and designed to catch and trap any spammy bots without any actual human users ever noticing them. The hidden form field is considered to be the most common example of this. This is where an extra field is included in a web form, but is then hidden from the view of all human users thanks to either CSS or JavaScript.
The only entity that can see this particular field is a bot. Once this field is filled out, the form is then automatically rejected, thereby blocking the bot from accessing anything. However, this solution is far from perfect, especially when it comes to individuals who use any kind of screen reader software, which can automatically pick up this hidden form field, ultimately leading to them filling it out and risking failing the test.
Fun tests
Many different CAPTCHA alternatives have arisen due to the fact that completing the actual CAPTCHAs themselves can be extremely irritating at times. The end result is a more fun and enjoyable way to prove to the system that you are a human and not a spammy bot.
However, it should be noted that these kinds of tests and games are not easily accessible to individuals who suffer from any kind of visual disability. The only other option that can be considered in this case are the audio CAPTCHAs, which, again, can also be difficult to decipher at times.
Even worse is the fact that oftentimes, these more fun options can be seen as rather juvenile to those individuals who have grown accustomed to completing the more traditional CAPTCHA options.
Time Stamps
The overall speed at which tasks are completed is perhaps the biggest difference between humans and bots. Humans generally take a few moments to read each field when they come across it, allowing them to take the time to decide what to put into it before moving on to the next one. Bots, on the other hand, have the ability to instantly fill these fields in.
Time stamps have the ability to reject forms that are filled out much too quickly. However, there are some bots in existence that are actually designed to take their time filling out form fields, which can essentially trick a time stamp into thinking that the bot is an actual human.
Thankfully, there are many different resources available online, many for free, that you can download and implement on your own websites to help prevent something like this from happening.
Add A CAPTCHA To A Contact Form
Almost every website contains a link for individuals to be able to contact the webmaster or the owner of the website. In order to help weed out spam, consider adding some kind of a CAPTCHA option to this contact form.
Can A CAPTCHA Code Damage A Website?
Most people are in agreement that CAPTCHA codes are generally annoying to have to deal with, but we eventually accept the fact that they are necessary tools to help fight span that can possibly be malicious in nature. However, what if it was actually possible that implementing a CAPTCHA code of some sort could actually cause damage to not only your own website, but also a client’s website as well? Whenever you decide to use a CAPTCHA option of any kind, be sure to consider all the risks that may be involved with doing so.
Use A Simple Math Equation
This is a CAPTCHA option that is actually extremely popular with most individuals. For example, you could consider using a simple addition or subtraction equation, then validate the answer from your end.
Utilize Some Form Of JavaScript Code
This is a great option to use, especially if you know ahead of time that your entire user base will have some form of JavaScript installed on their computers. It’s also a CAPTCHA option that can be completely transparently verified client-side, where a JavaScript function will be used to perform some simple arithmetic, pushing the final result into a hidden field to be verified on the side of the server itself.
Consider Using Photographs
Consider implementing a set of photographs and ask your users to select which one has a specific object in it.
Ending thoughts
You may just want to think about asking yourself if dealing with a CAPTCHA option in general is really worth all of the hassle. For example, if the main output of your website is email, then a CAPTCHA may not be something that you have to concern yourself with, especially since spam protection on most email clients is fairly decent enough already. However, if you run a sales-type website, then a CAPTCHA option of some sort may be a good idea.
The overall usability of your website is something that should always be considered first thing. This is something that can help save both money and clients on your end in the long run.
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