How the wholesale signup form blocks spam
Process Wholesale protects its theme signup forms with a built-in captcha that is on for every store and needs no setup. An applicant completes the captcha above the Submit button before the form can be submitted. The customer account signup forms for new customer accounts have no captcha; only customers who are signed in to their account can open them. The protection is the same on every plan.
At a glance
- Plan: All plans
- Setup: None. There are no captcha settings to configure.
- Forms with the captcha: Wholesale Signup Form and Wholesale Custom Signup theme blocks, including the signup form shown by Quick Buy
- Forms without a captcha: Wholesale signup Form and Wholesale custom signup Form in customer accounts, which require sign-in
- Language: The captcha follows the storefront language the visitor is browsing in
The built-in captcha on theme signup forms#
Every Wholesale Signup Form and Wholesale Custom Signup block shows a captcha widget (hCaptcha) above Submit, on legacy customer accounts and on new customer accounts alike. Shopify admin labels the two account types Legacy and Customer accounts under Settings > Customer accounts; the captcha works the same with both. The form also opts in to Shopify's own storefront captcha.
You do not add keys, turn anything on or pay for the captcha. It is part of Process Wholesale.
What an applicant sees#
- The applicant fills in the form. The captcha appears above Submit.
- The applicant completes the captcha challenge.
- The applicant selects Submit, and the application goes through.
If the applicant selects Submit too early, the form stays on the page and shows a red message for about eight seconds:
| Message | Meaning | What the applicant does |
|---|---|---|
| "Please complete the captcha." | The captcha was not completed | Complete the captcha and select Submit again |
| "The captcha is still loading. Please try again in a moment." | The captcha has not finished loading | Wait a moment and select Submit again |
| "The captcha couldn't load. Please refresh the page and try again." | The captcha could not load in the browser, often because of an ad blocker, privacy extension or network filter | Refresh the page, or turn off the blocker for your store and try again |
On a custom form with a File Upload field, the same messages appear in a browser pop-up instead.
On forms that use the new customer flow, and for applicants who are logged in, Process Wholesale shows "Captcha verification failed. Please try again." when it cannot confirm the captcha answer, and the application is not submitted. The applicant completes a new captcha and submits again. The captcha resets after each attempt.
Customer account signup forms#
The Wholesale signup Form and Wholesale custom signup Form in new customer accounts do not show a captcha. These pages are shown only to customers who have signed in to their store account, so an application always comes from an existing customer account.
What you can configure#
There are no spam settings in Process Wholesale. The built-in captcha is always on for theme signup forms.
Every application still waits for your approval in Customers > Pending, so a spam signup never becomes a wholesale customer on its own. Reject it with Reject B2B. See how to approve or reject wholesale applications.
Worked example#
A visitor opens your wholesale page with an ad blocker that blocks the captcha. They fill in the form and select Submit. The form shows "The captcha couldn't load. Please refresh the page and try again." and nothing is submitted. The visitor allows your site in the ad blocker, refreshes, completes the captcha, and selects Submit. The application appears in Customers > Pending and you receive the New Wholesale Application email.
Troubleshooting#
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Applicants report "The captcha couldn't load. Please refresh the page and try again." | A browser extension or network blocks the captcha | Ask the applicant to refresh, or to try another browser or turn off the blocker |
| Applicants report "Please complete the captcha." | Submit was selected before the captcha was completed | Complete the captcha first |
| Applicants report "Captcha verification failed. Please try again." | The captcha answer expired or could not be confirmed | Complete a new captcha and submit again |
| Spam applications still arrive | Captchas reduce automated signups but cannot stop a person filling in the form | Reject them in Customers > Pending with Reject B2B; with the rejection email turned off, nothing is sent |
Frequently asked questions#
Do I need to set up a captcha for the signup form?#
No. The built-in captcha is on for every Process Wholesale theme signup form, on every plan, with nothing to configure.
Does the wholesale signup form have a captcha?#
Yes, the theme signup forms do. The Wholesale Signup Form and Wholesale Custom Signup blocks show a captcha above Submit. The customer account forms do not, because only signed-in customers can open them.
What does an applicant see if the captcha does not load?#
The message "The captcha couldn't load. Please refresh the page and try again." The form cannot be submitted until the captcha loads, so the applicant refreshes or turns off whatever blocks it.
Can I use my own Google reCAPTCHA keys?#
No. Process Wholesale does not offer reCAPTCHA settings. Every theme signup form uses the built-in captcha.
Can spam signups become wholesale customers?#
No. Every application is tagged B2B_Registeration and waits in Customers > Pending until you approve it.