From SEO to user-friendly forms, companies dedicate a lot of time and resources to attracting and engaging with consumers, potential leads, and customers. Unfortunately, not all site traffic is high-quality. Bots, spammers, and other bad actors pose a security risk to organizations. Spam form submissions not only clog your database with fake information — they can also lead to security breaches and stolen data.
Thankfully, CAPTCHA programs — including reCAPTCHA and hCaptcha — can prevent the worst offenders from harming your business.
CAPTCHA Explained
The last time you filled out a payment form or logged into an online account, you may have had to check a box stating “I am not a robot,” identify certain pictures, or type text from an image. That was CAPTCHA technology in action.
CAPTCHAs (Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart) are security programs designed to differentiate between real web users and bots — and to filter out the latter.
reCAPTCHA vs. hCaptcha
There are a few different CAPTCHA solutions to choose from. Google reCAPTCHA is the most well-known, but there are growing concerns about reCAPTCHA and consumer privacy. hCaptcha has emerged as a viable alternative.
Google reCAPTCHA
Millions of websites use Google reCAPTCHA. It’s a free technology unless you’re at the enterprise level (performing a million+ assessments each month).
reCAPTCHA has two versions. V2 asks users to check a box or identify images, while V3 works entirely behind the scenes. People browsing the web (and filling out forms) won’t even know they’ve passed the CAPTCHA test because it requires no user input. Google accomplishes this by reviewing personal information, like cookies and search history, and assessing whether the user’s actions appear “normal.”
Obviously, this means Google is capturing a lot of consumer data. They use this data not only for security screenings but also for ad targeting. This is one of the main reasons people are looking elsewhere for CAPTCHA solutions.
hCaptcha
hCaptcha performs the traditional bot assessments, including box-checking and image identification. hCaptcha’s tests are more complex than reCAPTCHA’s, but you can adjust the settings to increase or decrease difficulty.
hCaptcha offers several plans, including a free Publisher version (with limited features and for up to one million requests per month). If you’re an enterprise-level corporation, hCaptcha’s Pro and Enterprise plans offer more features and support more assessments per month.
Which Choice is Right For You?
The three primary concerns with CAPTCHAs are site security, consumer privacy, and user experience. Unfortunately, these don’t always go hand-in-hand, so it’s up to each company to weigh their priorities and choose the best CAPTCHA for their goals.
reCAPTCHA is exceptionally user-friendly, with fairly easy tests and even invisible assessments. But, it relies heavily on user data, which can violate consumer privacy. And, as a Google product, reCAPTCHA can be finicky with other browsers or people using Incognito Mode and VPNs. It also isn’t compliant with many global privacy standards.
hCaptcha is all about privacy and transparency. It collects minimal data and doesn’t store the information for extended periods (or use it for ad targeting). But, this means users have to solve assessments more frequently, and hCaptcha’s tests are known to be a bit challenging (for example, identifying certain animal species vs. stop signs). Of course, this can also mean better protection against bots.
Integrate hCaptcha or reCAPTCHA with Ninja Forms
Ninja Forms is compatible with both hCaptcha and reCAPTCHA, so the choice is ultimately yours. We’re all about flexibility and meeting a variety of site needs.
If you prefer hCaptcha, get started by downloading the WordPress plugin. You can then integrate it with Ninja Forms in the hCaptcha settings on your WordPress dashboard. For reCAPTCHA, there’s no need to install a plugin. Instead, you’ll register your site on Google’s reCAPTCHA page and paste the API key into your Ninja Forms settings. (See full instructions here.)
Either way, you’ve taken a significant step toward site security — and prevented the headache of excessive spam form submissions.
Take action against bots and bad actors with hCaptcha or reCAPTCHA today!
