How to enable or add CAPTCHA on registration and login pages? (OJS 3.4.0-9)

Software Support
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1

Hello,

I am using OJS 3.4.0-9 and I would like to add CAPTCHA to increase security on both the registration page and the login page.
Right now, the system does not show any CAPTCHA for these forms, and I want to prevent bot registrations and brute-force login attempts.

My questions are:

  1. Does OJS 3.4.0-9 include a built-in CAPTCHA feature for login or registration?

  2. If not, what is the recommended method to add CAPTCHA?

    • Is there a plugin available for reCAPTCHA v2/v3?

    • Do I need to manually modify the templates?

    • Or should this be implemented using a custom plugin?

  3. Is there any official documentation or tutorial that explains how to integrate CAPTCHA with OJS 3.4.0-9?

2

Hi @kbh,

OJS 3.4.0-9 does support Google CAPTCHA for registration and login, but it is configured globally (not per-form) via the config.inc.php file rather than through a separate plugin.

When correctly configured, reCAPTCHA ought to cover user registration and other public forms, You do not normally need to modify templates or write a plugin to add reCAPTCHA to registration in OJS 3.4.0‑9, as the support is in core and is activated by config. Modifying login/registration templates is not recommended because it complicates future upgrades.

As for documentation, PKP’s Admin guide’s section on securing your system may prove helpful.
If you run into issues configuring, you may also wish to search for relevant threads here in the forum.

It’s worth noting as well, that OJS 3.5 includes support for Altcha, so that will shift when you upgrade.

-Roger
PKP Team