Image Captcha Mod

Image Captcha Mod
Summary	Adds a captcha using images to TNG contact pages.
Validation	n/a
Mod Updated	8 Feb 2025
Download link	version 15.0.0.15a TNG 15.0 version 14.0.0.14 TNG 14.0 version 13.0.2.10 TNG 13.0.2 version 12.0.0.9 TNG 12.0 version 11.0.2.3 TNG 11.0 version 11.0.0.2
Download stats	view v14 statistics
Author(s)	Rick Bisbee, Bob Carver
Homepage	Bisbee Family Connection
Mod Support	Support for Image_Captcha_Mod
Contact Developer	as above.
Latest Mod	15.0.0.15a
Min TNG V	11.0.2
Max TNG V	14+
Files modified	TNG_captcha.php
Related Mods	None
Notes

Description and Use

The Image Captcha mod adds a captcha using images to TNG contact pages. Image Captcha differs from most, in that it requires visitors to select one of a series of images that differs from the others. There is nothing to type, so you don't have to lay the mouse down to enter impossibly obscured words. It's quick and efficient and most users will actually enjoy the exercise. Those already logged into the website as registered users will not be presented with the Captcha, but will be given direct access to the protected page.

The Image Captcha display consists of a series of 'fill' images which are all the same. A different 'target' image will be arbitrarily positioned among them. You can choose to employ one or more sets of images included with the mod, or you can use your own custom images.

Prior to TNGv11 the Image Captcha Mod replaces your current TNG_captcha.php file, if any. It removes it altogether when uninstalled. Not to worry, TNG works fine without it, but if yours contains code you want to keep, please rename it so you can return to it later if you need to.

Beginning with TNGv12 Image Captcha modifies the TNG-supplied captcha file and returns it to factory spec upon removal.

Image Captcha provides language support via text files (cap_text.php) in the mod's support folder, under languages. There is no need to copy them to the TNG language folders because Image Captcha Mod uses them "in place" to prevent corruption of UTF-8 files. Other languages can be added by using these files as templates.

Image Capture version 12.0.0.5 only works with TNGv12. Vintage images in this mod are new and come from attractive 19th and early 20th century stock in the public domain. They are slightly larger than in previous versions, but you can set the display size up to 90 px square. If you want to retain your current image set, you can do so by identifying them as custom images in the mod's edit screen and setting the size between 60-90 pixels.

Image Capture version 14.0.0.12 introduces the ability to select one or more image sets out of 50+ that are available. The selected sets will be randomly presented when the Captcha challenge is displayed. If none are selected, and no custom, single pair is defined, a default image pair will be used.

Image Capture versions 14.0.0.13+ introduces the ability to prevent access after three failed attempts to pass the captcha challenge. See Revision History for more information.

NOTE: If you've upgraded your version of Image Captcha and are not seeing the images, you've probably neglected to uninstall the older version first. Check your customconfig.php and make sure the old version number is not listed after the new one. If so, just delete the old version number from the file.

Compatibility

Image Captcha Mod Tested With TNG Versions

Ver	1000-1002	1003-1101	1102-1200	1200-1301	1302 +	1400	1500
11.0.0.2
11.0.2.3
12.0.0.8				PHP 5.6/7.2
13.0.2.10					PHP 5.6/8
14.0.0.14						PHP 7.4/8
15.0.0.15a							PHP 7.4/8

*green: compatible   red: not compatible   white: not tested

See Multisite Testbed for information on how this mod is tested and managed.

Revision History

Version	Date	Description
v15.0.0.15a	8 Feb 2025	Adds updated French-UTF8 support files
v15.0.0.15	7 Feb 2025	Revised for TNGv15 compatibility.
v14.0.0.14	29 May 2024	If you're already successfully using v14.0.0.13 there may be no compelling reason to upgrade to v14.0.0.14 unless the following changes address known or observed problems: An error was found related to the "Sorry, this service is unavailable until..." message if the Numeric Data Preference system setting was set to Day/Month/Year. (identified by Ron Krzmarzick) The mod did not completely and properly function if the Mods Folder system setting differed from the "mods" default value. (identified by Ron Krzmarzick) The mod needed to further conform to guidelines. Specifically, the naming of Mod subfolders and files so as to avoid conflicts with previous versions. (Identified by Ken Roy)
v14.0.0.13	12 May 2024	To further thwart Bad Actor attempts to submit spam, a new option - Number of hours to suspend captcha - provides a "three strikes and out" option. That is, if responses to the captcha challenge are incorrect three times, no further attempts are permitted for a period of time selected by the site administrator. The suspension period can be, inclusively, between 1 and 24 hours, during which the "get out of jail" time is displayed instead of an otherwise normal, randomly selected image set. E.g., "Sorry, this service is unavailable until 08/05/2024 @ 14:07:35." (The included date is displayed in accordance with the Numeric Date Preference system setting. E.g., MM/DD/YYYY or DD/MM/YYYY.) The "three strikes and out" option will not be imposed if the Number of hours to suspend captcha is set to 0. This is the default setting, so that v14.0.0.13 can operate in the same manner as does v14.0.0.12. The options Number of images to show for captcha and Image size (pixels square) are now edited for valid settings. If an invalid setting is provided, a default value will be used (8 and 72, respectively). Some minor presentation changes were made: (1) The Continue button is disabled until a captcha image is actually selected, and (2) Selected images are highlighted by a surrounding box. Several new image sets are included. Amongst these are two "thematic" groupings: There are 8 sets dedicated to famous Norman Rockwell paintings and there are 4 sets based upon the humorous street art of the French artist Clet Abraham.
v14.0.0.12	1 May 2024	Enhancements allow for multiple standard image pairs to be selected, which will be randomly presented each time the Image Captcha challenge is made. Over 50 image pairs available for selection.
v12.0.0.9	24 Apr 2020	Removed dependence on customconfig.php. Previous versions used customconfig.php to store certain data. This was a potential problem if a previous version was not uninstalled before installing a new one.
v13.0.2.10	24 Apr 2020	Removed dependence on customconfig.php. Previous versions used customconfig.php to store certain data. This was a potential problem if a previous version was not uninstalled before installing a new one.
v13.0.2.9	24 Apr 2020	Fixed minor bugs.
v12.0.0.8	24 Sep 2020	Fixed minor bugs. Update to same features as v13.0.2.9
v12.0.0.7	24 Apr 2020	Removes some test code
v12.0.0.6	5 Jul 2018	Corrects bad TNGWiki link
v12.0.0.5	4 Jul 2018	Modifies TNGv12 distributed TNG_captcha.php and restores it when mod is removed. All new vintage images. User option to specify image display size Mod edit screen displays available image sets.
v11.0.2.3	17 May 2017	Recognizes mod folder path name set in config.php. This feature was introduced in TNGv11.0.2 making this version of the mod incompatible with earlier versions of TNG.
v11.0.0.2	05 Aug 2016	Fixed problem with uninstalling improperly
v11.0.0.1	01 Aug 2016	Initial release of Image Captcha Mod

Visualization

Image captcha v12.0.0.5 as seen by a visitor. Clicking anywhere on an image selects it.

Image captcha v14.0.0.12+ sample:

Image Sets

There are nine image sets provided with the mod. Each set consists of a "fill" image and a subtly different "target" image. You can also use your own custom images. Image sets are selected using the "Edit Options" button in the Mod Manager.

Set 1	Expand to view TNGv11 Captcha Images
Image set 1
Image set 2
Image set 3
Image set 4
Image set 5 Default
Image set 6
Image set 7
Image set 8
Image set 9
Custom

TNGv12 vintage images come from the public domain. Like family history, they represent times gone by.

Set 2	Expand to view TNGv12 Vintage Images
Image set 1 Moonstruck
Image set 2 Cigar bands
Image set 3 Frog goes a wooing
Image set 4 Sea creatures
Image set 5 Dickens
Image set 6 Fashion hats
Image set 7 Foxes
Image set 8 Birds
Image set 9 Promenade

ImgCap v14.0.0.13 images include the TNGv12 vintage images (above), bringing the total available to more than 80.

Expand to view v14.0.0.13+ Images
(Images w/ green backgrounds have been modified or added as of v14.0.0.13)

Custom images should be about 90 pixels square or slightly larger for version 12.

Upgrading From an Add-on

It is important that the Image Captcha add-on be completely uninstalled before installing this mod with Mod Manager.

Open the setup page for your Image Captcha add-on, usually found at www.example.com/extensions/imcap/index.php, replacing "example.com" with your own domain name.

Click on the Uninstall button at the bottom of the Setup page. After Setup uninstalls the add-on, remove the "imcap" folder from "extensions" and remove the Setup links from any pages or menus you may have created.

Note that if you are still using the v9.0.0.8 of the Add-on, you will need to

1. download the latest version of the add-on
2. extract it on your local computer
3. copy the index.php from the extracted imcap directory
4. overlay the existing index.php in your extensions/imcap folder

in order to uninstall the add-on on TNG v10.1 and above

Upgrading From an Earlier Mod

Log in as administrator and go to the Mod Manager listing.

Click on the line for the mod you wish to remove and, when it opens, click on "Uninstall."

Installing the Mod

Image Captcha is installed just like any other TNG Mod using the administrator's Mod Manager.

1. Download and unzip the mod package and place the contents in your "mods" folder.

2. Open Mod Manager and find the Mod in the listing.

Note: The first time you list Image Captcha v11, the Mod Manager may show the mod to be Partially Installed because the factory file - TNG_captcha.php - is already in place. Cleaning up the mod will remove it. Installing the mod will replace it with its own TNG_captcha.php file. If you uninstall this mod you should copy the factory TNG_captcha.php file back to the TNG root.

Image Captcha v12 is now available for TNGv12. It modifies the TNGv12 distributed captcha file and returns it to factory spec upon removal. If you have already removed or modified the TNG file, you will need to restore the original from the TNG distro package before you can install Image Captcha v12.

3. Open the Mod line, Click on Clean Up and then click on "Install."

4. If you want to change the default values, open the Mod line and click on "Edit Options."

Review each option and change it where desired, remembering to save each one as you change it.

To use your own images -

1. Create two similar images, one as a filler, the other to serve as the target. Make sure they are the same size and about 64 pixels square.

2. Put them in the TNG "img" folder (or anywhere else you like).

3. Open the Mod Manager, click on the Image Captca Mod line, and click "Edit Options."

4. If prior to v14.0.0.12, select Image Set 0 and save it.

5. Image paths are always relative to the TNG root folder. In the appropriate box enter and save the path for the fill image - for example: img/myfill.jpg (do not surround with quotes.)

6. In the other box enter and save the path for the target image - for example: img/mytarget.jpg (do not surround with quotes.)

To test the captcha, log out of the site, go to the home page and under the "Info" dropdown menu select "Contact us."

Image Captcha Options

The following remarks pertain to version 11 and following:

• In Mod Manager click on the Image Captcha Mod line then click "Edit Options."

• The first option (available since v14.0.0.13) allows you to specify how many hours to suspend access because three attempts to select the proper image failed. The accepted values range from 1 to 24, or 0 to allow an unlimited number of attempts.
• The next option (or first if prior to v14.0.0.12) lets you choose how many total images to show with the Captcha challenge. Default is 8. As of v14.0.0.13, the number of images to display can only be 4, 5, 6, 7 or 8, the latter being the default.

• You can set the size of the images in Image Captcha v12 between 60-90 pixels "or so." Version 11 is fixed at 60px square. As of v14.0.0.13, the value must be between 60 and 90, inclusive, with 72 being the default.

• Prior to v14.0.0.12, select the single image set you prefer and enter its ordinal assignment to the $imgset mod option. To use a custom set enter 0 (zero). As of v14.0.0.12, images are selected (or unselected) by clicking on the desired image pairs, with the first of each pair being a "filler/fail" choice and the second being the "target/success" choice. The image challenges will be prepared by randomly choosing from the selected image pairs. If no image pairs are selected, it will be assumed that a custom set will be defined.

• To use your own custom image set you must enter a TNG root-relative path to both a fill image and a target image. We recommend you place your custom images in TNG's 'img' folder so they won't be lost in a TNG or mod upgrade.
• As of v14.0.0.12, if no standard image pair is selected AND no custom pair defined a default pair (not shown) will be used.

• Change the options as you wish, saving each one as you change it. Each value has a button to allow you to restore the default value(s).

Expand to view TNGv11 Captcha Options

Expand to view TNGv12 Captcha Options

Expand to view v14.0.0.13+ Captcha Options

Uninstall Image Captcha

To uninstall the Image Captcha, log in as administrator, go to the Mod Manager, open the line for the mod in the listing and click "Uninstall."

Custom Text

The more recent versions of the mod come with support for several languages in addition to English: Afrikaans, Czech, Danish, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Portuguese (Brazil), and Spanish. If you want to use the Image Captcha Mod with another language, you'll need to create a cap_text.php file similar to those provided for English and place it in the mod support folder under languages. If you submit the file to the author of the mod, it will be included in future versions.

Disclaimer

No particular problems have been encountered with this mod, but as always, use it at your own risk.

Always re-test the Image Captcha after upgrading TNG.

Sites using this mod

This is a list of sites using the Image Captcha add-on. I hope you will find the Mod a little easier to use.

If you download and install this mod, please add/update your TNG Site to the table below:

URL	User	Note	Mod-Version	TNG-Version	User-language
Bisbee Family Connection	Rick Bisbee	Mod Developer	12.0.0.7	12.3	EN
Clan Moffat Genealogy Online	Roger Moffat	Finally replacing the Google Captcha which has been basically unsolvable in recent times	14.0.0.11	14.0.4	EN
Roger's Ramblings	Roger Moffat	Finally replacing the Google Captcha which has been basically unsolvable in recent times	14.0.0.11	14.0.4	EN
Pages From Our past	Allen Prunty	Elegant... Simply elegant. I am dyslexic and the word ones throw me for a loop. This one I can do. Thanks Rick.	13.0.2.10	13.1.2	EN
Racines Luxo-hennuyères	Michel Kirsch	Too many spams ! Thx Rick !	13.0.2.10	13.0.3	FR,EN,NL,DE
Online Genealogist	Jon Grubbs	After getting errors with Google's reCAPTCHA I decided to install this mod	12.0.0.8	13.0	EN
Our Roy and Boucher Family	Ken Roy	I replaced the reCaptcha mod with the Image Captcha Add-on in TNG V8, V9, and V10 and this mod in TNG V11. Beta tested v11.0.2.3 that supports renaming the mods folder	15.0.0.15a	TNG 15.0.1	EN,FR
Hooley Family Links	Rick Hooley	Public/Private	See Here	See Here	EN
Thames/Tims Family Association	Dustin Thames	After upgrading our site from v5 to v9, I added this Captcha mod.	9.0.0.8	9.0.4	EN
Kemp(e) Family History	Andrew Kemp	Replaced the reCaptcha mod with this mod in TNG V9	see User:Kempons	see User:Kempons	EN
DLMax-Max Westen's genealogy site	Max Westen	Love this version. Changed the dutch language a bit though! ;).	9.0.0.8	9.1.0	NL,EN
Our Family Genealogy Pages	Roger Navarre	No more complaints about illegible captcha words! Thanks	9.0.0.8	9.2.0	EN
MOTYER & BENJAMIN Family Genealogy (Bermuda branches)	John Mark Motyer	Public site	See here	See here	EN
De veenkoloniale genealogieën	Henny Savenije	Very effective against all kind of fake registrations. Thanks	9.0.0.8	9.2.1	EN,NL,AF,DE,FR, SP,KO,PT,IT
my family		(no public site)	see User:ojay	see User:ojay DE,NL,EN
Familienforschung Scabell	Helga Scabell	Public Private	12.0.0.6	13.0.1	DE
MULLFAMILIES	Michael	25 bot registrations one morning !! no more. Many thanks :		9.2	EN
Roni & Jerry's Genealogy and Family History	Jerry Liebowitz		10.1.0.11	10.1	EN
British 1820 Settlers to South Africa	Paul Tanner-Tremaine		12.0.0.6	12.0.1	EN
Schmit / Heemskerk Familie	Rudi Schmit		10.1.0.11	10.1.3	EN,NL,DE
R G Strong Family Genealogy	Russell Strong		11.0.0.2	11.0.1	EN,DE,FR,NL
Our Acadian Family	Randal Suire	Great Mod	11.0.0.1	11.0.1	EN,FR
Roots & Relatives Remembered	Ron Krzmarzick	Public & Private	See here	See here	EN,DE,CS
Atherton One Name Study	Derek Atherton		11.0.0.2	11.1	EN
Racine d'Alsace	J-Louis Valory	Public/Private - T17 customized	12.0.0.6	12.0.2	FR
Genealogy of the Weir and Drain Families	Beverley Stimpson	Public Site	11.0.2.3	11.1.2	EN
The Grahams of Helensburgh	Jim Graham	Public Site	11.0.2.3	12.0	EN
Sanderson Ancestors	Alexandra	Private Site	12.0.0.6	12.0.1	EN
Martius Family	Hendrik Martius	Half public	12.0.0.6	12.0.1	DE,EN,FR,NL
Lloyd & Lucas - A Merging of Interests	Chris Lloyd	Public site	12.0.0.6	12.0.1	EN
Genealogische Datenbank	JPB	Public site	see here	see here	DE,EN,FR
Leicestershire Antills and Connected Families	John Antill	Public site	12.0.0.6	12.0.3	EN
The Shardalow name and variations	John Shardalow	Brilliant...thanks!	12.0.0.6	12.1	EN
Barta-Joggele Online aus Mauren, Liechtenstein	Gerald Meier	Private	12.0.0.6	12.2	DE,EN,FR,ES,PT
Familienforschung SCABELL	Helga Scabell	Public/Private	12.0.0.6	13.0.1	DE
Cordes-Thomas Genealogy	John Cordes	Public	12.0.0.6	12.3	EN
Leverette Family History	Jeff Leverette	Public	12.0.0.6	12.3	EN
Descendants of John Jaffray	Robert Gray	Wasn't able to get the Google V2 recaptcha to work, this is fine. Thanks	12.0.0.6	12.3	EN
YourTrees	Berkshire FHS/Paul Barrett	Private/Synology NAS	13.0.2.10	13.0.4	EN
Hangaard Genealogy	David Hangard	Public / Private	13.0.2.10	13.0.4	EN,NO
Your Roots are Showing	Harold Craswell	Public/Private	See Here	See Here	EN
Helwegs Ahnen	Andreas Helweg	Public site	13.0.2.10	13.1	DE,EN,DA,NL
Daniel Bender - Generations	Allison Sibert	Public/ Living Private	13.0.2.10	13.1.2	EN
Oet Dorp en Marke Losser	Peter Heerink	Public/ Living Private	14.0.0.14	14.0.5	NL,EN,DE
Onze familiegeschiedenis	Wim van der Horde	Public / Private	15.0.0.6	15.0	NL,EN
Carver (et al) Family Tree	Bob Carver	Public / Private	14.0.0.14	14.0.4	EN
Nos Familles Genealogy	Eric Lenerville	Public/Private	14.0.0.13	14.0.4	EN,FR
Our Family History	Darryn Rose	Installed 24Apr24. Thank you for solving this issue as my hosting service forbids Google CAPTCHA. Public / Private	13.0.2.10	13.1.2	EN
Our Roots&Relatives	Kåre Kjøllesdal	Private	14.0.0.14	14.0.5	NO, EN
The Duttons of New England	Darrin Dutton	Public/Private	14.0.0.14	14.0.3	EN
GénéaKat	Katryne Chauvigné-Bourlaud	Public/Private - Many thanks for mod and help !	15​.0​.0​.15a	TNG 15.0.1	FR,EN,SP
Nordic Ancestry / Thaggard	Mogens C. Fenger	Private Website	14.0.0.14	14.0.6	EN, Da