In this episode, we focus on handling errors when reCAPTCHA fails in our login system. First up, we identify the two kinds of failures that can happen: either the request to the Google reCAPTCHA service itself fails (maybe due to connectivity issues or a bad secret key), or the verification doesn't pass the score threshold (meaning the system thinks you might be a bot).
To make things user-friendly, instead of letting errors just break the app or show a generic error page, we throw custom exceptions for each failure: RecaptchaRequestFailed
and RecaptchaVerificationFailed
. Laravel lets us define a render
method right inside these exceptions—this is where we choose to redirect the user back to the login page and flash a helpful status message. The login form picks up this status and displays it nicely so the user knows what went wrong and can try again.
We walk through making these exceptions, triggering them (even faking a failure to see what happens), and customizing the error message. Finally, we make sure this works for both types of failures, so users always get a clear message—no more die dumps or unclear errors!
By the end of the episode, error reporting for failed reCAPTCHA checks is smooth, informative, and user-friendly, setting up a much better experience for anyone using your app.