Web puzzles don't protect against bots, but humans have spent 819 million unpaid hours solving them
  • argh_another_username@lemmy.caEnglish
    361·
    4 months ago

    And the first one was what?! We began training their OCR then we trained the image recognition. With Google Rewards we were training their location recognition. It has always been free labor. At least with Google Rewards I’d earn money that I could spend in apps.

    • voracitude@lemmy.worldEnglish
      271·
      4 months ago

      (Derogatory) English slang for clever people, researchers, scientists. The Register isn’t exactly the most reputable of publications.

      • bazus1@lemmy.worldEnglish
        15·
        4 months ago

        If you see the word “boffin” in your article, you’re probably reading The Register.

          • deranger@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
            2·
            4 months ago

            “Boffin” sounds like an insult, not something you’d call a smart person. Someone who’s easily baffled.

            Also reminds me of a Zappa song, “Broken Hearts are for Assholes”, in which he speaks of a Sir Richard Pumpaloaf, a demented bread boffer.

    • kibiz0r@midwest.socialEnglish
      2·
      4 months ago

      Neutral mob with low HP. Won’t attack unless provoked. Not a threat except in large numbers.

  • atzanteol@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
    33·
    4 months ago

    The utility of reCAPTCHA challenges appears to be significantly diminished in an era when AI models can answer CAPTCHA questions almost as well as humans.

    Maybe - but using an AI isn’t exactly free. Depending on how many captchas you’re solving this could be a significant cost.