Including a captcha to your Contact Form 7 is an effective method to deter spam submissions and verify the authenticity of the messages you receive. Follow this tutorial to learn how to add a captcha to your Contact Form 7 plugin.
What is a Captcha?
Before we dive into the steps, let’s quickly overview what a captcha is. Captcha stands for “Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart”. It is a security feature designed to distinguish between real humans and automated bots. Captchas usually require users to complete a simple task, such as solving a puzzle or entering a series of distorted characters, to prove that they are not bots.
Step 1: Install and Activate the Contact Form 7 Plugin
The first step is to ensure that you have the Contact Form 7 plugin installed and activated on your WordPress website. If you haven’t done this already, go to your WordPress dashboard, navigate to the “Plugins” section, and search for “Contact Form 7”. Install and activate the plugin.
Step 2: Install and Activate the Really Simple CAPTCHA Plugin
To add a captcha to your Contact Form 7, you will need the support of another plugin called Really Simple CAPTCHA. This plugin works seamlessly with Contact Form 7 and provides the necessary captcha functionality.
1. Go to your WordPress dashboard and navigate to the "Plugins" section.
2. Search for "Really Simple CAPTCHA" and install and activate the plugin.
Step 3: Generate a CAPTCHA Tag in Contact Form 7
Now that you have both plugins installed and activated, it’s time to generate a captcha tag in Contact Form 7.
1. Go to your WordPress dashboard and navigate to the "Contact" section.
2. Select the contact form you want to add the captcha to or create a new one.
3. Inside the form editor, place your cursor where you want the captcha field to appear.
4. Click on the "Generate Tag" drop-down button and select "CAPTCHA".
Step 4: Configure the CAPTCHA Tag
After generating the captcha tag, you can configure its settings to customize the appearance and behavior of the captcha field.
1. In the "Form" tab of the captcha tag, you can set the size and appearance of the captcha field.
2. In the "Mail" tab, you can choose whether to include the captcha response in the email sent by the contact form.
3. In the "Messages" tab, you can customize the error messages shown to users if they fail to solve the captcha.
Step 5: Save and Test Your Contact Form
Once you have configured the captcha tag, make sure to save the changes to your contact form. You can then test the form to see if the captcha is working correctly.
Conclusion
Adding a captcha to your Contact Form 7 can significantly enhance the security and reliability of your contact form. By following the steps outlined in this article, you can easily integrate a captcha into your Contact Form 7 plugin. Remember to save your changes and test the form to ensure that the captcha is functioning as expected.