SafeWeb

<p><strong>BotFirewall</strong> is a powerful and modern plugin designed to protect your WordPress site from malicious bots, spam, and DDoS attacks. Using advanced JavaScript verification and encrypted cookies, BotFirewall ensures robust security without disrupting the experience of real users.</p>
<h3>Why Do You Need BotFirewall?</h3>
<p>In today’s internet landscape, bots make up a significant portion of web traffic, and many of them are malicious. They can attack your site, send spam, scrape content, or attempt to hack login pages like <code>wp-login.php</code>. BotFirewall addresses these threats by providing <strong>smart and flexible protection</strong> that:<br />
– <strong>Blocks bots</strong> with seamless JavaScript verification that most bots cannot pass.<br />
– <strong>Secures key pages</strong> like <code>wp-login.php</code> and <code>wp-signup.php</code> from unauthorized access.<br />
– <strong>Uses encrypted cookies</strong> to ensure only verified users gain access.<br />
– <strong>Offers customizable settings</strong> through an intuitive interface in the WordPress admin panel.</p>
<h3>Key Features of BotFirewall</h3>
<ul>
<li><strong>JavaScript Verification</strong>: Ensures visitors can execute JavaScript, effectively filtering out most bots.</li>
<li><strong>Encrypted Cookies</strong>: Cookies are tied to IP and User-Agent for enhanced security against spoofing.</li>
<li><strong>Customizable Page Protection</strong>: Enable or disable protection for <code>wp-login.php</code> and <code>wp-signup.php</code> pages via settings.</li>
<li><strong>Whitelist and Blacklist</strong>: Configure lists of allowed bots (e.g., Googlebot) and IPs, and block known malicious IPs, including subnet support (e.g., 192.168.0.0/24).</li>
<li><strong>Exclude URLs</strong>: Specify URLs to bypass bot protection entirely (e.g., for APIs or specific pages).</li>
<li><strong>Real-Time Statistics</strong>: Monitor bot activity with detailed stats – filter by time periods (Last 24 hours, Last Week, Last Month).</li>
<li><strong>Action Logging</strong>: Logs blocks and successful verifications with URL details, keeping data for the last 30 days.</li>
<li><strong>Allowed Bots Tab</strong>: Easily select known bots to allow without verification, with quick filters for bot types.</li>
<li><strong>Recent Activity</strong>: View the latest 10 logged sessions with details like IP, URL, and status.</li>
<li><strong>Lightweight and Fast</strong>: Optimized for minimal impact on site performance.</li>
<li><strong>Clean Uninstall</strong>: Removes all data, including logs and settings, upon deactivation and deletion.</li>
<li><strong>Customizable Verification Page</strong>: Tailor the text (title, description, countdown), CSS styling, and logo of the verification page to match your site’s design.</li>
<li><strong>Enhanced Support</strong>: Get assistance directly through Live Chat in the Support tab for quick resolution of issues.</li>
</ul>
<h3>How Does BotFirewall Work?</h3>
<p>BotFirewall employs a multi-layered protection system:<br />
1. <strong>Cookie Check</strong>: If a visitor has a valid cookie, they bypass additional checks.<br />
2. <strong>Whitelist</strong>: Known “good” bots (e.g., search engine crawlers) are automatically allowed.<br />
3. <strong>JavaScript Verification</strong>: If no cookie is present, the visitor is redirected to a verification page where they must execute a JavaScript request. Bots unable to run JavaScript are blocked.<br />
4. <strong>Login Page Protection</strong>: Optionally protect <code>wp-login.php</code> and <code>wp-signup.php</code> to prevent brute-force attacks.<br />
5. <strong>Post-Verification Redirect</strong>: After successful verification, the user is redirected to their original page, and a cookie is set for future visits.</p>
<h3>Why BotFirewall is a Must-Have for Your Site</h3>
<ul>
<li><strong>Spam and DDoS Protection</strong>: Effectively blocks bots that attempt to spam or overload your site.</li>
<li><strong>Login Security</strong>: Safeguards <code>wp-login.php</code> and <code>wp-signup.php</code> from unauthorized access and brute-force attacks.</li>
<li><strong>Flexibility</strong>: Customize protection with whitelists, blacklists, cookie lifetime settings, and verification page styling.</li>
<li><strong>Transparency</strong>: Detailed statistics and logs let you monitor bot activity.</li>
<li><strong>Ease of Use</strong>: A user-friendly interface in the WordPress admin panel makes configuration a breeze.</li>
<li><strong>Professional Look</strong>: Customize the verification page with your own text, styles, logo, and a modern font (Roboto) for a polished appearance.</li>
<li><strong>Reliable Support</strong>: Access our support team via Live Chat for help with any technical or security issues.</li>
</ul>
<p>BotFirewall is an <strong>essential tool</strong> for WordPress site owners who want to protect their content, users, and server from malicious bots. Install BotFirewall today and secure your site with confidence!</p>


BotFirewall | Stop Spam Bots & Secure Login

BotFirewall is a powerful and modern plugin designed to protect your WordPress site from malicious bots, spam, and DDoS attacks.

Daniel

<p><strong>This is ALTCHA Plugin version 1.</strong></p>
<p><strong>ALTCHA Plugin version 2 is now available, offering improved protection and enhanced reliability. An upgrade is recommended for all users.</strong></p>
<p><a href="https://altcha.org/docs/v2/wordpress" rel="nofollow ugc">Learn more</a> | <a href="https://altcha.org/docs/v2/wordpress/install" rel="nofollow ugc">Installation guide</a> | <a href="https://altcha.org/docs/v2/wordpress/migrating-from-v1/" rel="nofollow ugc">Migration guide</a></p>
<p>What’s new in version 2:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>Effective</strong>: blocks 99% of spam and abuse attempts</li>
<li><strong>Invisible for users</strong>: frictionless protection, no puzzles or CAPTCHAs</li>
<li><strong>Works everywhere</strong>: plugin-agnostic <a href="https://altcha.org/docs/v2/wordpress/features/#request-interceptor--works-everywhere" rel="nofollow ugc">Request Interceptor</a> integrates with any form plugin</li>
<li><strong>Handles heavy traffic</strong>: stay online with <a href="https://altcha.org/docs/v2/wordpress/features/#under-attack-mode--stay-online-under-pressure" rel="nofollow ugc">Under Attack Mode</a></li>
<li><strong>Stops abuse at scale</strong>: firewall and rate limiting included</li>
<li><strong>Privacy-first</strong>: 100% GDPR-compliant and fully accessible</li>
<li><strong>Unlimited</strong>: no external services, unlimited verifications</li>
</ul>
<p>Learn more about ALTCHA at <a href="https://altcha.org" rel="nofollow ugc">altcha.org</a>.</p>
<p><a href="https://altcha.org" rel="nofollow ugc">ALTCHA</a> provides a free, open-source Captcha alternative utilizing a proof-of-work mechanism to safeguard your website against spam and unwanted content. Our anti-spam solution ensures robust spam protection without compromising user privacy.</p>
<p>Unlike other solutions, ALTCHA is free, open-source, and self-hosted. It operates independently without external services, avoids the use of cookies and fingerprinting, refrains from user tracking, and maintains full compliance with GDPR regulations.</p>
<h3>Free Mode</h3>
<p>The free self-hosted mode is enabled by default after installation. No additional setup is required, except enabling the integrations you need in the plugin settings.</p>
<h3>Privacy</h3>
<h4>No cookies, no tracking</h4>
<p>ALTCHA prioritizes user privacy by avoiding the use of cookies and fingerprinting techniques.</p>
<h4>No external service</h4>
<p>Operating in Self-hosted mode (the default setting), this plugin remains fully contained within your WordPress installation, eliminating any reliance on external services. You can opt-in for our SaaS version to utilize the Spam Filter API. For more information visit https://altcha.org.</p>
<h3>Modes of Operation</h3>
<p>This plugin operates in two modes, you can select which mode you want in the settings (see API Region):</p>
<ul>
<li>Self-hosted – free, fully self-contained without external services.</li>
<li>Custom or SaaS API – requires a server such as <a href="https://altcha.org/docs/v2/sentinel/" rel="nofollow ugc">ALTCHA Sentinel</a>.</li>
</ul>
<h3>REST API</h3>
<p>This plugin requires the WordPress REST API. If you are using any “Disable REST API” plugins, ensure that the endpoint <code>/altcha/v1/challenge</code> is allowed.</p>
<h3>Supported Integrations</h3>
<ul>
<li>CoBlocks</li>
<li>Contact Form 7</li>
<li>Elementor Pro Forms</li>
<li>Enfold Theme</li>
<li>Formidable Forms</li>
<li>Forminator</li>
<li>GravityForms</li>
<li>HTML Forms</li>
<li>WPDiscuz</li>
<li>WPForms</li>
<li>WP-Members</li>
<li>WordPress Login, Register, Password reset</li>
<li>WordPress Comments</li>
<li>WooCommerce</li>
<li>Custom HTML (with a short code <code>[altcha]</code>)</li>
</ul>
<h3>Source Code</h3>
<p>All source code for the plugin, and the ALTCHA widget is available on GitHub. In the repository, you’ll also find versions of non-minified JavaScript and CSS assets:</p>
<ul>
<li>Plugin: https://github.com/altcha-org/wordpress-plugin</li>
<li>ALTCHA Widget: https://github.com/altcha-org/altcha</li>
</ul>
<h3>Terms of Service And Privacy Policy for SaaS</h3>
<ul>
<li>Privacy Policy: https://altcha.org/privacy-policy</li>
<li>Terms of Service: https://altcha.org/terms-of-service</li>
</ul>


ALTCHA Spam Protection


ALTCHA is a free, open-source Captcha alternative. It uses a proof-of-work mechanism to protect your website from spam and unwanted content. Unlike other solutions, ALTCHA is self-hosted, avoids cookies and tracking, and is fully GDPR compliant. It also features a powerful spam filter that integrates seamlessly with your WordPress site. With options for self-hosted and external service modes, ALTCHA offers flexibility and robust protection for any WordPress site.


ALTCHA: Free, Open-Source Captcha Alternative with Robust Spam Protection


I've installed ALTCHA on a non-WordPress website a little under a year ago, and it's been protecting that website from spam registrations (these were an issue there!) ever since.



Now I'm using it on a couple WordPress websites as well, and it seems to work just as fine, albeit it's only been a few days.



If you've ever been annoyed by having to repeatedly select busses or fire hydrants, or move parrots around, and you don't want to push that experience onto your visitors,  ALTCHA can be the solution. It's non-intrusive to normal users (the calculation performed only takes a couple seconds), but is a great way to deter spammers, who would rather automatically submit a few hundred forms than spend that same amount of CPU time on a calculation required to only submit that one form on your page.



Oh, and I love that this plugin is open source and no-nonsense. It will never clutter your WordPress UI with calls to upgrade to pro or notifications about Black Friday sales. It adds a single sub-menu item under Settings, and is very civil in all regards. And it also respects your visitor privacy: no data will be transmitted to other servers than yours by default due to having it installed, unless you explicitly configure it to use ALTCHA's cloud API, which adds some extra functionality in addition to filtering out bots.



All that said, it's not a silver bullet of course, and you may want to keep Akismet enabled too as a second line of defence.


Great self-contained spam protection


Altcha v1 was brilliant - did just what I wanted seamlessly.  Sadly when I installed v2 the login blocked for some users (and it was impossible to see why).  I think the increased comms to the central system were to blame, but I'm not sure.  I can't switch back to v1 without having the 'nag' to upgrade constantly visible on the plugin page, and putting the shortcode back into all the forms.  A quick switch to Cloudfare Turnstile and all is working nicely.  Sad, though, because Altcha looked great.


v1 was great; v2 - I had to uninstall

ALTCHA offers a free, open-source Captcha alternative, ensuring robust spam protection while respecting user privacy and GDPR compliance.

BotFirewall | Stop Spam Bots & Secure Login vs ALTCHA Spam Protection