[NFB-DB] A solution for CAPTCHAs

[Christopher Toth]

Hi list,

I'm the lead developer at Accessible Apps, a small software company 
devoted to improving the lives of the blind.

Recently I have been focusing my development efforts on a solution for 
CAPTCHAs.

CAPTCHAs are the little text boxes which ask you to enter the letters 
and numbers that you see above while you are signing up for websites, 
downloading software, making purchases, and otherwise using the web.
Historically these have been difficult for the blind and nearly 
impossible for the deaf-blind, as often times the CAPTCHAs have either 
no alternative or an audio-only option.

I believe I have come up with a solution which will make CAPTCHAs a 
problem of the past.

I have designed and developed a service called CAPTCHA Be Gone.
This is a powerful online service along with a set of extensions which 
you can install into your browser. Currently it works with Firefox and 
Internet Explorer, and support for more browsers including those for 
mobile devices is planned.

How it works:

Once you have signed up for CAPTCHA Be Gone and installed the extension 
in your browser, just go to any page with a CAPTCHA on it, press a 
single keystroke, wait about 12 seconds for the service to solve the 
CAPTCHA, and the solution is automatically copied to your clipboard. You 
can then paste it in the field and go on about your day.

The service is still in Beta, but I expect to be launching it very soon 
for Internet Explorer and Firefox, with more browsers quick to follow.

Access to CAPTCHA Be gone  will cost $3.50 a month, or you can buy a 
year at a time for $36. I first tried developing a completely automated 
system which I could offer very cheaply or for free, but it turns out 
that we still need humans on the bback end to handle tricky CAPTCHAs 
that machines cannot. that said, I believe I've hit a good balance that 
will allow the service to exist but not be financially burdensome.

If you're interested in CAPTCHA be Gone, go on over to 
https://CAPTCHABeGone.com and sign up for the mailing list to get an 
announcement when it is publicly available!

I look forward to your feedback, and am very excited to be launching 
CAPTCHA Be Gone soon!


     - Chris