Captchas in the Panel?

I guess it's been awhile since I added a domain, but when did the Captchas start showing up in the panel? (Maybe other areas too... haven't looked around)

Am I missing an obvious reason why they would even be in a place that requires a login to have access?

My first guess would be someone figured out how to bypass the panel for adding domains and they don't want that being done for some reason.

I hope it wasn't because someone figured out how to bypass someone else's panel.

I think someone here on the forums mentioned that it was related to customers automating panel actions. I thought it was domain registrations, but it might have been adding hosting as well.

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From discussion I had on IRC (in which some un-named DH developers were participating) I learned that our little "proof of concept" working code samples for automating the adding of subdomains with cURL and PHP (or something very similar) had been utilized by a few SEOtards to automate the adding of literally thousands of subdomains in a few accounts that had no other purpose than gaming the search engines (Gawd I detest these lowlifes!).

I was told that DreamHost's response to that was to have the "captcha" appear once "N" number of domains (or subdomains) had been added to an account, in order to discourage this wasteful practice.

I have no idea if other parts of the panel have similar controls now, but if I were the one programming it for the domain adding routines, I would have put such a failsafe everywhere else in the panel I thought it might be useful.

As is so often the case with these "marketing" vermin (SEOtards, SPAMtards, telemarketers, snake-oil salesmen, and their ilk.) their anti-social behavior (and the idiots that make it pay off for them) has resulted in the loss of a nice little bit of functionality the rest of might have responsibly enjoyed.

--rlparker

Ahhh... well the downside to that, I guess is that if you've accumulated hundreds of domains over many years here (or host them for others), that you're captcha'd even if you only add 1 per year.

You'd think they could just set a limit on anything that's not done through the panel, since someone willing to add that many domains through the panel will also sit there and keep entering the codes.

Or at least change it to check the rate of adding, rather than the total domain count.

In reply to:

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Ahhh... well the downside to that, I guess is that if you've accumulated hundreds of domains over many years here (or host them for others), that you're captcha'd even if you only add 1 per year.

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Yep. That's how I first noticed the captcha, which prompted the discussion on IRC.

You have some good suggestions for other ways to implement some safeguards; you should write support and share them.

--rlparker

I hear that in Russia and China people are paid $ to sit in front of a computer and type these captchas in all day.

I could do that. I think I would make at least three dollars a week.

Now is that a lowercase l or an uppercase i ? No it is a speck of fly poo on the screen.


--
Norm

Opinions are my own views, not DreamHosts'.
I am NOT a DreamHost employee OK!!

You act on my advice at your own risk!

A better solution would be that if any of these SEOtards are detected by the system, a script should run that automatically provides targeting information for DreamHost's orbiting space-based laser platform. Then everything within 10 feet of their IP location should be melted into slag, and if there is any collateral damage (such as their colleagues burning to death and stuff) well that's just too bad, isn't it?

-- si-blog --

Can't they just have it so that whoever logs into their account gets zapped with a jolt of electricity from their keyboard sufficient to stop their heart? I wouldn't want it to turn out to be those shady looking characters on the 6th floor of my building...

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That wouldn't be sufficient, because the SEOtards may be using an automated system that doesn't require their proximity. Under those circumstances, a broader area of destruction would be needed.

-- si-blog --

Alright, I'll just have to wear my tinfoil hat, then...

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Lasers or not, it's a good look!

He-he.. ani't that funny yo?

http://www.mybestcity.com - ain't a war
http://www.newbabyassistant.com - sonz

Unfortunately, I don't think they have hearts - so the jolt of electricity would be useless.