Human or Computer? Take This Test
By Sara Robinson, New York Times, December 10, 2002
As chief scientist of the Internet portal Yahoo, Dr. Udi Manber had a profound
problem: how to differentiate human intelligence from that of a machine.
His concern was more than academic. Rogue
computer programs masquerading as teenagers were infiltrating Yahoo chat
rooms, collecting personal information or posting links to Web sites
promoting company products. Spam companies were creating havoc by
writing programs that swiftly registered for hundreds of free Yahoo
e-mail accounts then used them for bulk mailings.
"What we needed," said Dr. Manber, "was
a simple way of telling a human user from a computer program."
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