Alert: Big Google reCAPTCHA Change Coming By the End of the Year

• If you use Google reCAPTCHA, this is important news: the reCAPTCHA service will be migrated to Google Cloud by the end of the year.
• This Google community answer explains how Google will automatically migrate your key to a new Google Cloud project. Account holders should get an email when this happens.
• Google is opaque about exactly when your keys might be migrated (or whether this initiative will be postponed like many of their other announced changes).
• Your individual keys will remain the same and the service will still be free up to 10,000 assessments per month.
• However, if a key exceeds the 10,000/month threshold, the key will stop working until billing is enabled in its project.
• Google provides a pricing calculator to help you estimate any cost overages.
• If you, like me, experienced a mess when Google “automatically” migrated analytics properties to GA4, you might not be looking forward to their migration. Google provides instructions to migrate your keys manually if you prefer.

Raising the Bar (or Lowering the Boom?) for Sponsors at WordPress Events

• The WordPress Community Team has announced a more stringent vetting process for sponsorship of WordCamps.
• The new process, started in late November 2024, was mandated by “project leadership” which tasked Community Program Managers to manage it.
• The guidelines ensure GPL and WordPress trademark compliance, and avoid the use of newly verboten terms like “WordPress Hosting.”
• Further, any organization wishing to sponsor a WordCamp must now be directly approved by either Matt Mullenweg or Mary Hubbard.
• As a longtime organizer of WordCamps, it saddens me to see even more hurdles added to the already difficult job of finding adequate sponsorship for local events.

Updates on “The Recent Unpleasantness”

• Sé Reed has filed a WordPress Code of Conduct violation against Matt Mullenweg for “extreme retaliation” following her account ban last month. WordPress Executive Director Mary Hubbard says that some of Reed’s concerns have been addressed, but others are still under active review.
• Joost de Valk was removed from the speaking schedule of WordCamp Asia, apparently due to personal offenses to Matt Mullenweg who claims Joost “stabbed me when I was down.”
• How the Hot Nacho Scandal Shapes WP Engine Dispute – Roger Montti at SEJ serves up an interesting hypothesis.

Worth a Look

• Woo has refreshed its brand. What do you think? It was also updated on the dashboard in the WooCommerce 9.6.1 release.
• 6 Steps to Writing Web Copy That Sells, Not Yells – Abby Wood of the Content Lab gives some great advice.
• Google has dropped its commitment to preventing its AI technology from being used in ways “that cause or are likely to cause overall harm.” 😬
• Learn how to use AI for faster, better paid search audits in this helpful article.
• WordPress 6.7.2 is scheduled to be released tomorrow – a minor release with 35 core and Block Editor bug fixes.
• The roadmap for WordPress 6.8 has been published with focus on the Query Loop, data views, and performance.