#26 2015-02-15 8:18 pm

Flavio93Zena

Member

From: Italy

Registered: 2014-12-24

Posts: 15

Re: captcha changes to search

I don't know whether pedigree used a big hammer and kicked the server with it but...The search seems to work now. Yet the captcha doesn't show up making me think you temporarily reverted back...?

Btw @Alex I'm using www thanks for your concern!

Last edited by Flavio93Zena (2015-02-15 8:18 pm)

---

I'm an angel with a shotgun,
fighting 'til the war's won,
I don't care if heaven won't take me back.

pedigree

uıɐbɐ ʎɐqǝ ɯoɹɟ pɹɐoqʎǝʞ ɐ buıʎnq ɹǝʌǝu ɯ,ı

From: New Zealand

Registered: 2008-04-16

Posts: 7,056

Re: captcha changes to search

I reverted it while I work on an alternative while watching the logs

I'm going to use a site wide, user independant rate detection.  If searches burst to X per Y seconds, then it will captcha everyone.

I found a logic bug in the display/error code so before you were having searched ignored, it was actually supposed to throw an invalid captcha error but failed to do so

Flavio93Zena

Member

From: Italy

Registered: 2014-12-24

Posts: 15

Re: captcha changes to search

Sounds good to me, yet I don't know about the "captcha everyone if searches go past a given number".. I guess I'll just wait, see, and report any bug that I can find.

---

I'm an angel with a shotgun,
fighting 'til the war's won,
I don't care if heaven won't take me back.

NonSuch

Member

Registered: 2014-08-22

Posts: 3

Re: captcha changes to search

Thank you for your efforts to resolve this issue, pedigree.  Nothing quite like spending hour upon hour, searching through strings of code, searching for an elusive error.  Your hard work is appreciated.

pedigree

uıɐbɐ ʎɐqǝ ɯoɹɟ pɹɐoqʎǝʞ ɐ buıʎnq ɹǝʌǝu ɯ,ı

From: New Zealand

Registered: 2008-04-16

Posts: 7,056

Re: captcha changes to search

The new code is running now so I hope that it is going to give you less troubles searching while still protecting from a DDoS.

if the search gets DDoSed then it will prompt for a captcha

Flavio93Zena

Member

From: Italy

Registered: 2014-12-24

Posts: 15

Re: captcha changes to search

Aknowledged. As of now it seems to work and I see no captcha. I'll wait and report you back if captcha won't work when it would be supposed to
Thanks a TON for your efforts indeed.

---

I'm an angel with a shotgun,
fighting 'til the war's won,
I don't care if heaven won't take me back.

pedigree

uıɐbɐ ʎɐqǝ ɯoɹɟ pɹɐoqʎǝʞ ɐ buıʎnq ɹǝʌǝu ɯ,ı

From: New Zealand

Registered: 2008-04-16

Posts: 7,056

Re: captcha changes to search

I'm watching the search queues now and they'll only trigger a captcha when they fill up more.  You shouldn't see one but if you do it only takes 5 seconds to complete it.

NonSuch

Member

Registered: 2014-08-22

Posts: 3

Re: captcha changes to search

Search is now working fine here; have not seen a captcha. 

Thank you. 

staubkorb

Member

Registered: 2011-07-08

Posts: 11

Re: captcha changes to search

Working fine now.  Thanks a BUNCH for your efforts!

kpatz

Member

Registered: 2008-10-09

Posts: 1,437

Re: captcha changes to search

Just move the search page to another URL.  Then all the idiots running the bots will "miss" for a while until they reprogram their bots.

We're smarter than they are, and we should be able to react quickly to stop their retarded attempts to slow us down.

---

Spam happens when greed meets stupidity.

Flavio93Zena

Member

From: Italy

Registered: 2014-12-24

Posts: 15

Re: captcha changes to search

Just move the search page to another URL.  Then all the idiots running the bots will "miss" for a while until they reprogram their bots.

We're smarter than they are, and we should be able to react quickly to stop their retarded attempts to slow us down.

Except that doing what you say would break ANY SFS plugin for any forum software.

---

I'm an angel with a shotgun,
fighting 'til the war's won,
I don't care if heaven won't take me back.

pedigree

uıɐbɐ ʎɐqǝ ɯoɹɟ pɹɐoqʎǝʞ ɐ buıʎnq ɹǝʌǝu ɯ,ı

From: New Zealand

Registered: 2008-04-16

Posts: 7,056

Re: captcha changes to search

no plugin should be using search and if they are, then Im happy to break it

lisati

Member

From: Porirua, New Zealand

Registered: 2011-04-14

Posts: 340

Re: captcha changes to search

Except that doing what you say would break ANY SFS plugin for any forum software.

Maybe....if the URL for the API is changed as well as the URL for using the website's search page.

Flavio93Zena

Member

From: Italy

Registered: 2014-12-24

Posts: 15

Re: captcha changes to search

There are quite many actually... They make searches easier in order not to c/p the IPs all the times.
And I don't think plugins are being the issue, more likely spambots spamming searches.

Last edited by Flavio93Zena (2015-02-15 11:19 pm)

---

I'm an angel with a shotgun,
fighting 'til the war's won,
I don't care if heaven won't take me back.

lisati

Member

From: Porirua, New Zealand

Registered: 2011-04-14

Posts: 340

Re: captcha changes to search

no plugin should be using search and if they are, then Im happy to break it

My thoughts exactly. A well-behaved plugin shouldn't be using the search page that's meant for viewing by a person who is using a browser.

Last edited by lisati (2015-02-15 11:39 pm)

Flavio93Zena

Member

From: Italy

Registered: 2014-12-24

Posts: 15

Re: captcha changes to search

The plugins I am talking about simply auto search a given IP instead of c/p the IP and pressing search, nothing more. They don't bypass the flood control nor anything malicious.

---

I'm an angel with a shotgun,
fighting 'til the war's won,
I don't care if heaven won't take me back.

pedigree

uıɐbɐ ʎɐqǝ ɯoɹɟ pɹɐoqʎǝʞ ɐ buıʎnq ɹǝʌǝu ɯ,ı

From: New Zealand

Registered: 2008-04-16

Posts: 7,056

Re: captcha changes to search

Javascript redirects can handle that.

Maikuolan

Member

From: Perth, Western Australia

Registered: 2011-08-09

Posts: 799

Website

Re: captcha changes to search

The thing is.. Having plugins use the search page intended for humans is just sheer laziness on part of the plugin author; Even from a more selfish perspective that completely ignores what's best for SFS itself.. It's still better, even for the plugin and any websites using that plugin, to use the API, because the additional bandwidth usage applies to both the sender and the receiver, meaning there'll be additional load on the website using the plugin as well as on SFS, and the additional cycles of processing used to process the additional HTML content of the search page intended for human usage, additional HTML content that doesn't exist within the results returned by the API.

The additional bandwidth usage and additional cycles of processing may certainly not seem like very much to many people, but, end of the day, additional bandwidth usage is still additional bandwidth usage and additional processing is still additional processing; I think, in the spirit of good, clean, efficient and orderly programming, there shouldn't be any valid excuse for using the search page intended for human usage instead of the API, but, of course, there'll always be those that don't adhere to this. :-/

kpatz

Member

Registered: 2008-10-09

Posts: 1,437

Re: captcha changes to search

Plugins should use the API, and the search is just for humans to use to get more details on a listed entry.

In my "plugin", all automated lookups use the API (and they're cached), but for entries that return a positive hit in the API I provide links to the searches for my own use.  They aren't automated, as I have to click them manually to get results, and if Ped wants to change the search links, I can adjust my code to accommodate this, or remove the links entirely.  They're in the admin side of the forum so they can't be used (or abused) by anyone other than myself.

The API is designed to handle the load, searches are meant for manual use only, so I have no problem if Ped changes the URL to the search pages to get around the DDoS attacks.

Last edited by kpatz (2015-02-16 3:09 am)

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Spam happens when greed meets stupidity.

Mr Fixit eh

Member

Registered: 2015-02-16

Posts: 3

Re: captcha changes to search

Catpcha Verification

I am grateful for the service you provide, and I understand the need for human verification to prevent attacks against your server. 

In the sticky on Captcha, it seems to be saying that it requires Captcha verification once per hour.  However, I am finding that it requires human verification for every single search.  Is this the design, or am I experiencing some glitch?

I am running IE 11 with all updates in a Sandboxie window with cookies allowed.

Steve

pedigree

uıɐbɐ ʎɐqǝ ɯoɹɟ pɹɐoqʎǝʞ ɐ buıʎnq ɹǝʌǝu ɯ,ı

From: New Zealand

Registered: 2008-04-16

Posts: 7,056

Re: captcha changes to search

Catpcha Verification

I am grateful for the service you provide, and I understand the need for human verification to prevent attacks against your server. 

In the sticky on Captcha, it seems to be saying that it requires Captcha verification once per hour.  However, I am finding that it requires human verification for every single search.  Is this the design, or am I experiencing some glitch?

I am running IE 11 with all updates in a Sandboxie window with cookies allowed.

Steve

If your IP is listed in the API, you will always be prompted for a captcha.

Mr Fixit eh

Member

Registered: 2015-02-16

Posts: 3

Re: captcha changes to search

If your IP is listed in the API, you will always be prompted for a captcha.

Thank-you pedigree,
I took my time between searches today, and it was fine - only one captcha verification.  I must have been going too fast yesterday and triggering the captcha.

Steve

chrishicks

Member

Registered: 2011-04-11

Posts: 2

Re: captcha changes to search

I know this topic is a bit old but I'm also seeing a captcha for every single search I do. I have about a dozen IPs to check and even though the captcha isn't all that bad doing it over and over and over is a bit of a chore. I did 5 checks and had to solve the captcha 6 times. I'd say it takes me probably 5 minutes between searches so is that too fast or something? Is this something that's related to my browser by chance? I use Firefox 36.01 with a few add-ons all of which are disabled for this site so I'm not sure why I'd be getting this over and over. I also checked my IP on the site and it's not reported as bad so I'm not sure what else to check for. Ideas?

pedigree

uıɐbɐ ʎɐqǝ ɯoɹɟ pɹɐoqʎǝʞ ɐ buıʎnq ɹǝʌǝu ɯ,ı

From: New Zealand

Registered: 2008-04-16

Posts: 7,056

Re: captcha changes to search

Post up your IP so that we can have a look

chrishicks

Member

Registered: 2011-04-11

Posts: 2

Re: captcha changes to search

Thanks for the reply. It's 68.37.131.111.