- Website builder
- Troubleshooting
- Forms & spam checks
Forms and spam-check problems
Visitors can't send your form, spam still arrives, or enquiries seem to be missing — causes and fixes, including every reCAPTCHA message.
Visitors see a spam-check message#
| Message | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| The spam check did not run. Please make sure JavaScript is enabled and try again. | The visitor's browser couldn't load Google reCAPTCHA (ad blocker, privacy tool, network). | The visitor can pause their blocker. If many people report it, check your reCAPTCHA keys. |
| This page was open for a while and the spam check expired. Please submit again. | The page sat open a long time. | Submitting again works. |
| This submission looked automated, so it was not accepted. If you are a person, please try again. | reCAPTCHA scored the visit as a bot. | If real people see this, lower the Strictness (0.5 is recommended). |
| The spam check failed. Please reload the page and try again. | The keys don't match, or Google rejected the token. | Check your keys — below. |
Check your reCAPTCHA keys#
Most problems after adding your own keys are one of these:
- Domains — in the reCAPTCHA admin, your keys must list every domain the site answers on, including
www.. - Version — the keys must match the Version chosen in Spam protection: v3 keys with v3, v2 keys with v2.
- Pair — the site key and the secret key must come from the same reCAPTCHA site.
Fix them under Settings › General Settings › Spam protection. See Spam protection.
Spam still gets through#
- Turn on spam protection if it is off, and add your own keys.
- With reCAPTCHA v3, raise the Strictness a little (0.6–0.7).
- Remove unneeded fields — and never show your email address as plain text on the page.
Enquiries seem to be missing#
- Look in Forms › Form Enquiries — submissions are stored there, not emailed.
- Send a test from your own site. If it arrives, the form works.
- Check that the page uses the right form (the Form element's Select Form), and that the form is Active.
Too many submissions at once#
Each visitor can send a limited number of submissions per minute, to stop floods. A genuine visitor never hits it; if someone does, they can try again a minute later.
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