How to set up hCaptcha – Free And Privacy-focused solution
Do you want to get rid of fake form submissions by bots? WPForms has a solution for this to secure your leads and payment
Google’s ReCaptcha is everywhere: practically every time we want to log in or register on a web page we will have to pass it to prove to the service that we are not a bot. That “I am human” button that sometimes seems so silly to us, is actually very necessary to avoid certain types of attacks. Google’s is the best known since it is very secure and, in addition, it is free.
Until now, this Google service was very interesting: it offered a very high level of security, with the user having to select certain images, something that only a human could do. For example, Google could show us nine different photos and could ask us to select those with traffic lights, taxis, or other elements.
hCpatcha is essentially the same as reCaptcha, at least for the user. In fact, it works practically the same: it asks us to select images where a certain object is shown. The big difference from Google’s is that it puts security first. As we can find, they neither sell nor collect any data from the people who use the captcha, making this one of the most powerful weapons against Google, Mr.Data.
At the same time, while every time we select images in Google’s captcha we do so for the search engine to perfect its Artificial Intelligence for free, what this new company does is donate the money generated by that free training to the charitable entity that we choose.
In addition, and unlike reCaptcha, there are other operating options, and it will not only ask you to select certain images . Eventually it may also ask you to select an object within a single image or to categorize a photograph. You have more security options, and that makes it even more secure. Therefore, the next time you enter a web page, there is a small chance – ever bigger – that you will have to fill in an hCaptcha and not the classic Google reCaptcha.
You can use WPForms which is one of the best plugins for a WordPress site to create attractive contact forms. All the more, it is very efficient quite quickly thanks to its drag & drop generator.
Comes with several cool features like smart conditional logic to ensure your visitors have a great customer experience, which in turn increases the chances of them submitting their contact information.
In this article, let me walk you through how to configure hCaptcha which is the Recaptcha alternative, this new free alternative focused on privacy.
You may ask, what does captcha do for your site?
It’s simple!
hCaptcha the ReCaptcha alternative helps keep your website forms secure and free of spam, which doesn’t mean unnecessary bots or spam.
The biggest challenge for a website manager is to protect it against bots and spam in an easy way. hCaptcha is considered the next alternative to Google’s reCAPTCHA where “h” in hCaptcha stands for human. You are wondering how to configure this for your website. Do not panic.
hCaptcha VS reCaptcha:
hCAPTCHA is a free alternative on WordPress and other platforms to stop using Google’s reCAPTCHA. Basically, its function is the same as reCaptcha, at least for the user, since it works exactly the same: You must select images where an object appears. The difference lies in the privacy of these responses, as hCaptcha does not sell or store or sell that data.
It also indicates that it will not always consist of selecting an object in images and indicates that it is a « system improvement», as it varies from reCAPTCHA.
hCaptcha is a defense system against bots and SPAM, but it gives more control over the level of difficulty that a website needs and also better protects the privacy of its users, remember that the use of reCAPTCHA donates this work to Google.
hCaptcha has 100% of the features of reCAPTCHA V2 and is compatible with its API. The Enterprise version of hCaptcha ( BotStop ) includes the features of reCAPTCHA V2 + V3 and goes much further with sophisticated custom threat models, detailed bot scores and other functionalities.
hCaptcha pays administrators who use its technology, it is a “quid pro cuo”, webmasters protect themselves from SPAM and hCAptcha trains its algorithm to be more efficient.
One of the main reasons, we adapt to hCaptcha over reCaptcha is because hCaptcha has a lot more options to integrate with your websites. hCaptcha’s privacy policy is compatible with all the recent regulations like the GDPR and CCPA. I would like to add a point that, hCaptcha is a free tool and you don’t need to pay for it. The hCaptcha helps you to keep your website secure from spam and bots by asking them some simple questions to prove your users are human. You can see an example below:
hCaptcha is considered the best alternative to Google’s reCaptcha.
You may be wondering, how safe is it to use hCaptcha over reCaptcha?
In this article, you will find how the all-new hCaptcha primarily focuses on user privacy. It doesn’t track users which don’t spoil your site visitors’ experience on your website. Don’t worry; adding Captcha to your website forms is easier than ever. WPForms helps you integrate hCaptcha into your site’s forms and could help you benefit from more. To generate your own privacy policy you can read my guide on the best privacy policy generators.
How To Configure Captcha The Recaptcha Alternative Quickly With WPForms
Setting up hCaptcha integrated with WPForms saves you time and is the best way as a site developer you can do for a client. There are a few simple steps how to configure hCaptcha.
Follow the steps below to get a clear idea of how to do this:
Total time: 3 minutes
Install and activate WPForms
If you are a new developer, I suggest you use WPForms for your website needs as it is considered to be the best plugin in the WordPress community. Not only that, but it has more benefits when you make your website look professional. Alright, now to do this install the WPForms plugin. To do so, you can click here and you will be taken there.
Choose the hCpatcha
Once the installation process is complete, go to WPForms → Settings page.
Now go to the tab named CAPTCHA, click on the tab and select the hCaptcha option. After selecting that, all you need to do is add your website to Captcha.
Add your website and configure it
Log in to your hCaptcha account and click on the New Site button. You may ask yourself why should we do this? Well, to connect your WPForms to hCaptcha, you will be asked to generate a new API key that will help you authenticate your WordPress website with your Captcha account. After selecting the new site button, you can give your website name in the Add new site key section, and then you will be presented with various options to configure your Captcha settings.
You can configure the domain name, Captcha filters, Captcha difficulty and more from general settings. After making new changes, try clicking the Save button to save the changes you made.
Add your site key
After that, you will be taken to your site’s keys page. You can now click the settings button to view your full site key. Copy the site key and now all you have to do is add your Captcha site key to your WPForms settings page.
You may also need to copy and paste the hCaptcha site secret key to your WPForms settings page. After completing this step, you may need to configure Captcha settings like conflict-free mode, error messages etc.
Add hCaptcha to your WordPress form
Now that you are ready, you can add your hCaptcha to your WordPress form very easily. Alright, go to your WPForms and create a new form or you can use the existing form and click on the hCaptcha field which you can see under the standard fields section. Now you will be displayed with the hCaptcha Enabled badge on your form builder.
You can always turn hCaptcha on and off in general settings.
Tools used:
Conclusion
hCaptcha is Google’s best Recaptcha alternative, people who don’t want to use reCAPTCHA can use WPForms hCaptcha. The change of system to combat spam and hCaptcha reCAPTCHA is fast and easy to perform also hCaptcha is well documented to be implemented in any online platform.
If you want to prevent spam submission for your WordPress forms then you need to embed Captcha in the forms. And to be more precise WPForms is one of the best plugins available on the market and it is so powerful. It’s not just a form, but it can do a lot more than you might think. Discover the features of WPForms.