Cloudflare Turnstile Replaces CAPTCHA Tests With a Browser Challenge

pcmag.com:

Cloudflare is launching a new service called Turnstile that aims to replace CAPTCHA tests.

Mention "Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart" (CAPTCHA) to most people and they'll probably roll their eyes. I for one have had more than enough of being asked to identify images of taxis or attempting to decipher the word hidden in unreadable text.

Cloudflare Turnstile removes the need(Opens in a new window) for a user to complete a test at all. Instead, it performs one of several "non-intrusive browser challenges based on telemetry and client behavior exhibited during a session." It happens in the background and the user will see a verification animation play as the test occurs automatically.

The feature that gives Turnstile the highest chance of succeeding and replacing CAPTCHA is Cloudflare's decision to make it available to everyone(Opens in a new window). You don't have to be a Cloudflare customer to take advantage of the Turnstile API, just sign up for free, receive "simple steps to get started" in an email, and then remove all remnants of CAPTCHA from your website.

If more encouragement is required to entice a switch to Turnstile, Cloudflare points out that Google's reCAPTCHA dominates the market and using it requires sharing your data with the Google. That's why Cloudflare dumped reCAPTCHA back in 2020. Instead, Turnstile uses data it has access to through collaborations with device manufacturers to perform the validation. Therefore it can "confirm data without actually collecting, touching, or storing that data ourselves."

Sign up for SecurityWatch newsletter for our top privacy and security stories delivered right to your inbox.

This newsletter may contain advertising, deals, or