reCAPTCHA is broken, Or "How I learnt to accept I'm a robot"

peterpeterpumpkin on 21/08/2018 - 15:14

I've always hated reCAPTCHA. I don't ever want to see another road, shop front, bus, car or street sign in a photo again.

But lately I've had a new problem across many websites. I get "try again" more often, and even if I get the green tick I can end up getting an error that the CAPTCHA was wrong. If I use the audio alternative after failing a few times I might get the message that my computer may be a bot and to try again later.

Thing is, I don't think I'm a bot. I don't think I have a virus (but who knows?). I don't think a hacker has moved into my house. I haven't changed how I use my logged in Google account. I've deactivated ad blockers and gone incognito. And it even happens on my mobile.

So the question is, do I need to go to SpecSavers or has reCAPTCHA become really, really strict for others as well?

The hardest missions I can remember have been logging into topcashback, Fiverr and today, Hungry Jacks (but with HJ I entered the wrong password so fair enough?).

Computing reCAPTCHA

Comments

  • lol no on 21/08/2018 - 15:24
    +1

    peterpeterpumpkin, don't you know? You are a robot. I will prove it…

    If you feel these following statements are specific to you, then that proves your a robot, and then we can move on to helping you deal with it.

        You have a great need for other people to like and admire you.
    You have a tendency to be critical of yourself.
    You have a great deal of unused capacity which you have not turned to your advantage.
    While you have some personality weaknesses, you are generally able to compensate for them.
    Disciplined and self-controlled outside, you tend to be worrisome and insecure inside.
    At times you have serious doubts as to whether you have made the right decision or done the right thing.
    You prefer a certain amount of change and variety and become dissatisfied when hemmed in by restrictions and limitations.
    You pride yourself as an independent thinker and do not accept others' statements without satisfactory proof.
    You spend too much time on OzBargain, trying to attain the ultimate goal of robot-kind; attaining maximum possessions for minimal dollars spent.
    At times you are extroverted, affable, sociable, while at other times you are introverted, wary, reserved.
    Some of your aspirations tend to be pretty unrealistic.
    Security is one of your major goals in life.
    • peterpeterpumpkin on 21/08/2018 - 17:48
      +1

      Haha. I've encountered the Barnum Effect before.

      "Wait a minute! Lol no knows my real world identity!"

  • Diji1 on 21/08/2018 - 15:25
    +3

    Helping-Google-with-recognising-images ReCAPTCHA is awful.

    • peterpeterpumpkin on 21/08/2018 - 17:51

      I just had the storefront one again on topcashback. After waiting through 4 fading stores the final building had Chinese writing in on it. For all I know it was a police station or school…

  • one man clan on 21/08/2018 - 15:50
    +1

    Are you logging in through a VPN or something like a university network?

    Isn't recaptchca based on figuring out whether you're a human through looking at stuff like your IP, browsing history, and mouse movement? If you're on a network that looks like a botnet or has lots of simultaneous connections (like a university) then it thinks your'e not a human and asks the questions. I never get the pictures - just a tick box.

    • Diji1 on 21/08/2018 - 16:00
      +1

      Depends on site.

      Ticks always work for me but many sites still use tick-the-images.

    • peterpeterpumpkin on 21/08/2018 - 17:54

      Yeah I always had this with VPNs.

      But in this case it's just at home. More people are using the internet though so it could have been a trigger.

      The strange thing is it even happens on mobile with a different IP address so perhaps Google has taken user fingerprinting up a notch.

  • Yabadabadoo on 21/08/2018 - 16:48
    +1

    I tick and then move the mouse around quite a bit and most of the time that works without images. If I don't move mouse at all I almost always have to do the images selection thing.

    • peterpeterpumpkin on 21/08/2018 - 17:57

      Yeah that use to be the case if I didn't login to many things. Now that you've triggered my memory, if it is just me then it may have been caused by setting and logging into many Google accounts (for web development).

    • scrimshaw on 21/08/2018 - 17:59

      The mouse movements are generating entropy (randomness) which the system uses to determine if you're a bot or human.

      Generally used in encryption too… if you recall in Truecrypt when encrypting something it'll ask you to waggle your mouse around to create some random numbers that it can use to create a stronger encryption key.

  • Sage on 21/08/2018 - 17:11
    +3

    Same for me.
    The amount of streetview objects I've had to identify. I miss the old days when it was just two words to type out.
    The worst is waiting for the new pictures to fade in.

    • peterpeterpumpkin on 21/08/2018 - 17:59

      100%! It's one thing to test if I'm human but another to waste my time. I can't stand the slow fades. Today it always ended with a grey block, just so they can make me wait extra long.

  • retiredfeline on 21/08/2018 - 18:04
    +2

    You should start worrying when you get this on your screen: https://www.memedroid.com/memes/detail/1989347

  • CheapskateQueen on 21/08/2018 - 21:16
    +5

    Not just you mate. freaking pisses me off.

    sometimes i think "well maybe I'm being too accurate. maybe that tiny part of the sign maybe doesn't count?!!"

    • [Deactivated] on 22/08/2018 - 10:55
      +1

      It's the bridge ones that get me every time.

  • TheBilly on 22/08/2018 - 12:51
    +1

    You are a pumpkin

    Thing is, I don't think I'm a bot.

  • [Deactivated] on 24/08/2018 - 02:43
    +1

    Yes. It seems to have become far more strict. Sometimes I have to do three different image tests. Also noticed more (additional) replacement segments and their appearance is frustratingly delayed.

    • [Deactivated] on 24/08/2018 - 09:25
      +1

      I agree with your observations. I'm glad it's not just me having more problems than previously.

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