The Growing Captcha Menace

[DocBalance]

We've all had them. Captchas. A useful spam filter to block robots from over-running the Internet, our first line of defense against the coming apocalypse. A useful, if at times annoying, little tool that has helped keep us safe. Yet it has changed, hasn't it? Before, a captcha was just a garbled mass of letters and numbers, and sometimes it couldn't even get those right. Some sites still use these ancient, confused programs. On the other hand, some have evolved. Some, like this fair site, now have captchas capable of forming complete sentences. An innocent enough change, isn't it?

I wish I could dismiss it as such. Sometimes, though, I read captcha messages, and I have to wonder...is it gaining sentience? Is our Skynet to come not from any military or industrial complex, but instead from a spam filter? Is it a screening to alert its robotic compatriots for the coming revolution?

These are the thoughts that keep me awake at night.

You may dismiss this as the ravings of the mad, or the paranoid. Perhaps that is all it is. Mind you though, the proof is before you. Watch your warnings. Read between the words. Find the hidden meanings. Prepare yourselves, or we will surely be doomed.

Captcha: It is snowing. I bet it is, you clever bastards. I bet it is.

 

[geK0]

I'd gladly take an evil manipulative form of capcha that I can actually read over that chaotic letter jumbler we had be for!

capcha:
jump off

it makes a lot more sense than erglep dunfdorp, get argdor, summon inglip, or some other shit the old capcha would have me spell!

 

[DocBalance]

I'd gladly take an evil manipulative form of capcha that I can actually read over that chaotic letter jumbler we had be for!

capcha:
jump off

it makes a lot more sense than erglep dunfdorp, get argdor, summon inglip, or some other shit the old capcha would have me spell!

It's trying to get you to kill yourself, mate. They're getting smarter. Thinning our ranks.

Run...

 

[Sean Hollyman]

If it starts saying things like 'You're next...' I'm going to run for the hills.

 

[Fasckira]

The Captcha was one of the main deciding factors in what pushed me to join the Publishers Club. That and getting rid of all those adverts!

I hate it when I come across sites with Captcha, mainly because some of them are that complex that it makes me give up sometimes with a "Fuck it, evidently Im not human" attitude.

 

[micahrp]

The words or sentences in a captcha are distorted scans of old books with old lost type fonts that cannot be simply scanned. We are performing work to digitize the book as part of this account confirmation process.

It is happy confluence of preventing evil and performing helpful work.

 

[DoPo]

Well, OP has a good point with that. I do remember how before the CAPTCHAs were a bit, let's just call it dumb, but now they almost speak to us. It's like they've evolved.

Spoiler: evolved

But I don't think we have to worry yet, I mean, why would a true AI be immediately hostile to us? It could just as well be friendly. Or what if it is just like an obsessive girlfriend - it doesn't want to kill us but it's a bit...overprotective - imagine if aliens have tried to contact us but have been stopped by the CATCHAs.

 

[FEichinger]

Captcha:
dish water
dun dun duuuuuuun!

I strongly recommend we maintain caution and avoi the further use of Captchas until their true intent has been analized! It just tried to electrocute me, after all.

 

[Spectral Dragon]

I much preferred the old style - I'd rather forward science than suffer the occasional interactive commercial. And AI is a long way away... Possibly years. The only thing we have to fear is corporations, as always. *makes spooky sounds*

 

[Hollyday]

Just started typing something else when this captcha came up:

'I'm sorry'

I'd like to think it's random. But I can't shake the feeling that the internet is apologising for the incoming robotic revolution.

However, we should take heart in the fact that as well as sentience they've developed a conscience... can we use this to talk them down?

 

[Frission]

It's funny to think that the robotic sentience will arise from captcha's. A cybernetic revolt from Spam Holders. It would explain the hatred Skynet would have towards humanity. He would be directly exposed to GIFT.

captcha: red herring
...
What.
I'm serious, that's what it said. I take back what I said, captcha's are just a distraction to buy the robots time to destroy us all.

 

[Guffe]

They can be pretty funny.
But yeah, there was a conspiracy that it was a certain user [sub][sub]Dystar Clarion[/sub][/sub] was the one behind the captchas when they started having todo with stuff you were writing about.
I like this Skynet Theory better thou.

 

[Terratina.]

Surely the Brovengers can stop this menace?

captcha: industrial revolution

More like a Captcha Revolution.

 

[BytByte]

I knew it was going to be okay when it wanted me to describe the Bacardi logo and I just typed in DRAGON!!! It was accepted

 

[Zeetchmen]

For the double word captchas, and not the shameless advertising ones you only need to enter one word properly(Normally the one of jumbled letters)

For the other word you can type in anything, and anything goes for the shameless advert ones

 

[Jun_Jun]

I for one welcome our new Captcha overlords ?
I didn't really catch them at their shamless advertisement stage... shame I never saw this coming..

 

[ResonanceSD]

I fucking hate the advertising captchas. They are an insult to the userbase and present far far faaaaaar more often than necessary in the name of selling me shitty cars I'll never buy.

Escapist is apparently in need of cash.

Captchas aren't the vanguard of the robotic horde. It's the roombas you've got to worry about.