Good plugin (read if you get spam after update)

After serving me well for years, today I updated the plugin to version 5.1, which requires version 3 of reCAPTCHA, yet silently fails (you just start getting tons of spam) if you don’t have the new v3 API keys.

My problem was that I had forgotten I was even using reCAPTCHA, so I ignored the generic verbiage (yes, there are instructions and a FAQ), and I was just surprised and a bit suspicious after getting tons of spam after the update. Because of the spam wave I thought the plugin had been hacked.

Alas, the plugin does not show you any warnings about you still having the old reCAPTCHA v2 setup enabled, it just silently fails and you start getting tons of spam. I think the author could address this, because as the sudden flow of one-star ratings show, this is not clear. The “instructions” are there, sure, but they are generic. As part of the plugin upgrade, I think there should be a specific warning, reminding you that you were actually using reCAPTCHA, and that it’s time to go to google.com/recaptcha and get new v3 API keys. And it should show this warning whenever you open your admin controls, to remind you that you are still using legacy settings.