[nabs-l] CAPTCHA Alternatives

[Peter Donahue]

Hello again everyone,

    There are all ready alternatives to Visual CAPTCHAS for protecting 
sensitive information and Web resources from being hacked or spammed. It's 
called "Word verification." In word verification a user is given a very 
simple question or two to answer for example, "What is today?" The 
individual is then required to type in their answer or is presented with a 
list of possible answers to choose from. The user types in the correct 
response or chooses the right one from the list. Assuming they make the 
correct choice they are then granted access to restricted parts of a Web 
site or can submit a Web form.

    Word verification utilities have the ability to detect whether the 
response comes from a keyboard or if it is entered by another computer, "A 
bot." Once this determination is made the legitimate user can submit their 
form or is granted restricted access privileges while the bot is denied. I 
have heard from several individuals that have encountered Web sites that use 
this kind of verification instead of visual verification "CAPTCHAS." And 
best of all word verification can be used audibly or tactually and without 
the involvement of third party solvers.

Peter Donahue