Google reCAPTCHA Moves to Cloud: What This Means for the Email Form Module

Google has recently made a major transition by migrating reCAPTCHA to its Cloud platform. While reCAPTCHA v2 (challenge-based) and v3 (invisible scoring) were widely used and supported across various platforms, Google is now centralizing its services — including reCAPTCHA — under the Google Cloud ecosystem.

This change not only impacts how developers integrate reCAPTCHA, but also introduces a more secure and flexible way to authenticate and validate human users. The Email Form module for ExpressionEngine has also been updated to comply with the new Google Cloud reCAPTCHA implementation.

Key Changes in the New reCAPTCHA on Google Cloud

New Authentication Model

Instead of the traditional secret/site key pairing, Google Cloud reCAPTCHA now relies on a single Site Key and a Service Account JSON file for authentication.
You’ll need to generate this service account key in the Google Cloud Console and store it on your server.

Project ID Requirement

The new system also requires a Project ID associated with your Google Cloud project. This ID must be specified in the module settings.

Challenge and Score Versions Still Exist

Although reCAPTCHA v2 and v3 are deprecated in their original forms, the concepts of "Challenge" (interactive verification) and "Score" (risk analysis) still remain under the new names:

Cloud-Based Management

You now manage all reCAPTCHA configuration from the Google Cloud Console, which brings consistent control and logging capabilities across all your Google Cloud services.

What’s New in the Email Form Module for ExpressionEngine

To align with these updates, I’ve released an important update to the Email Form module:

These changes make the module more secure and compatible with Google’s long-term roadmap for authentication services.

Upgrading Notes

If you’re upgrading from an older version of the Email Form module:

More info can be found on docs.reinos.nl/email-form/control-panel.html#google-recaptcha

If you have questions or run into issues while transitioning, feel free to reach out via the support channel.

5/26/2025