How to Add Google reCAPTCHA to your Download Buttons

Google reCAPTCHA – ‘Easy on Humans, Hard on Bots’

Google reCAPTCHA is a free service that is widely used on websites to block abuse and spam. reCAPTCHA blocks spam users while still allowing valid users to easily proceed. The Simple Download Monitor Plugin has a feature that when enabled, allows you to add reCAPTCHA to the downloads you create. Adding this security measure to downloadable items on your website allows only ‘real life‘ users to proceed to download.

Adding Google reCAPTCHA to my Downloads

Enabling the Google reCAPTCHA feature for Simple Download monitor is quick and easy. Follow the instructions below to enable it on your WordPress site:

1. In your WP dashboard, click on Settings under the Downloads menu.
2. Once you are on the settings page, click on the Advanced Settings tab.
3. You will now see the settings that relate to reCAPTCHA under the ‘Google Captcha‘ heading.
4. Check the box next to Enable reCAPTCHA to apply this feature to your site. Enabling this will add captcha to the ‘download now’ buttons.
5. You will need to copy and paste your reCAPTCHA site API key into the ‘Site Key’ field and your reCAPTCHA secret API key into the ‘Secret Key’ field. You can obtain these keys from Google reCAPTCHA here. Make sure to create keys for reCAPTCHA V2 “I am not a robot” checkbox option.
6. Save Changes after entering in your reCAPTCHA details.
7. The reCAPTCHA verification box will now appear above all of the download buttons you have created.

Google reCAPTCHA on Downloads

Once you have enabled the reCAPTCHA feature, your visitors will need to complete the verification before being able to download the item. If a customer successfully completes the reCAPTCHA verification, they will be able to download the item you are offering. If a customer attempts to continue to download an item without completing reCAPTCHA, they will see a message stating ‘Error: Google reCAPTCHA verification failed’.

Examples: reCaptcha Verification for Simple Download Monitor

Prior to reCAPTCHA verification

After reCAPTCHA verification.

Example: reCAPTCHA Verification Failed