reCaptcha module for Prestashop 1.6 and 1.7

At Linea Gráfica we have optimized our reCaptcha module to effectively prevent spam in registration forms that is causing significant problems in PrestaShop stores.

We explain what spam is and how to install our module to protect your registration, contact and newsletter subscription forms from spam emails. And you can have it installed in less than 10 minutes. Put an end to that problem by using the reCaptcha Module for Prestashop !

Spam and maintenance of corporate mail servers

Eliminating spam is one of the most strenuous control tasks in managing corporate email accounts. But what exactly is spam? These are unsolicited advertising messages that are sent en masse both via email addresses and in the form of SMS messages.

How to recognize a spam email?

They generally share a series of factors that make them recognizable:

• The sender's address of the message is not familiar.
• They don't have a “Reply” address in most cases.
• The subject line tends to be a phrase designed to draw a lot of attention or alert the recipient.
• When opened, the content displays advertisements, tricks to make money quickly, foolproof products, special offers or lists of products with incredible discounts.
• Some messages often include spelling or concordance errors.
• Personal information is often requested in the message.

How does spam work?

Spammers collect as many active email addresses as possible, those that are being used, and use various techniques to obtain them, some of which are very sophisticated.

• Mailing lists: Spammers sign up for mailing lists and collect all the addresses that appear on those lists.
• Illegal database purchases: Although not permitted, underlying markets exist.
• Using automated programs that scan the Internet collecting email addresses from websites, forums, newsgroups and similar sources.
• DHA ( Directory Harvest Attack ) techniques: spammers generate hundreds of combinations of email addresses as if they belonged to a specific domain. They then send emails to all these addresses and the server responds with errors for those that do not actually exist, which are discarded. This way they obtain the correct accounts.

Disadvantages of receiving spam emails in online stores

Although it may seem that receiving spam emails in our store is not harmful, the truth is that it presents many inconveniences . First of all, receiving emails from bots can cause our inbox to collapse or cause us to “lose” genuine and important messages in the midst of spam. Furthermore, due to the ability of bots to collect emails, your website's domain will appear in spam emails sent by bots and your domain may be blacklisted by email providers. As a result, emails from your online store that you send, such as newsletters , will go directly to your own customers' "spam" folders. Also, if you send your e-commerce emails via PHP and you receive massive spam, these emails will overload your server and the loading speed of your store's pages may slow down. If you use SMTP and rely on an external provider to send emails, bot emails will be deducted from your balance, which may result in you exceeding your plan and having to pay more money for the service.

I receive spam through Prestashop forms. What should I do?

Have you started receiving a lot of emails from an @mail.ru email address or similar domains? It is possible that your account has been added to a spam list. Don't worry, there is an effective solution that you can activate through a simple procedure. Forget about receiving more emails. spam through your contact form, it is a 100% effective solution to block intrusive emails.

What is a Captcha?

It is an automatic test that distinguishes computers from humans. A security measure that is carried out with an authentication consisting of writing a series of slightly distorted numbers and letters in a box to prove your “humanity”.

What about reCaptcha?

This is the evolution of the previous one . A system created by Google to perform this same verification but by pressing only a button that says “I am not a robot”. When you do this, an algorithm is set in motion to verify that your navigation corresponds to that of a human and not that of automatic programs. It also analyzes other factors that the company has decided not to reveal so that spammers cannot bypass it. Below we see how to insert a reCaptcha in Prestashop forms .

Block spam with the reCaptcha module in Prestashop

PrestaShop has a module that allows you to include reCAPTCHA in your contact and new account creation forms to prevent bots from filling your inbox with useless, annoying messages that compromise your security.

Download and install the reCAPTCHA module.

The first thing to do is download the module compatible with the version of Prestashop you have installed, “1.6.x” or “1.7.x”. Then, as with all other modules, upload it to Prestashop through the control panel. Once the upload is complete, install the module and activate it.

Download the module here!

Activate the reCaptcha service

To add a reCaptcha to your form, you first need to get one. Who can provide it to you? Who else but Google? Go to google.com/recaptcha/intro/index.html and follow the steps below:

1. Log in with your email and password or register if you have never logged in before.
2. Select the type of Captcha.
3. Enter your website domain.
4. Accept the terms and conditions, alerts and click “Register”.
5. Copy the site key and secret key.

Configuring the reCAPTCHA module

Once you have copied the above keys, go to the Prestashop panel and proceed as follows:

1. Go to the “Modules and Services” section and go to the “Configure Captcha” section.
2. In the “General Configuration” tab you will see two boxes:
3. In the first one, “Captcha public key (Site key)”, copy the site key.
4. In the second, “Captcha private key (Secret key)”, copy the secret key.

Both data that you need to copy can be obtained from your site's Google registry. Enable the following two options to activate the reCaptcha both in the contact form and when creating a new account (user).

reCaptcha enabled on Prestashop forms!

Congratulations! You're done! Once you've configured the module with the steps above, you can access your online store and verify the inclusion of reCaptcha. If you notice, the contact form section now displays the fields you already had and includes a box below with the text "I'm not a robot", with the reCaptcha symbol and the checkbox just above the "Submit" button. As you can see, it is very easy to include a reCaptcha module in Prestashop to put an end to spam . Forget about wasting time and resources cleaning your inbox and at the same time safeguard your account from any viruses that these emails may contain. If you have any questions about the process , contact our support service , they will be able to help you solve any problem. If you liked it, what are you waiting for to download it?

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