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Fixing the 404: Troubleshooting Really Simple CAPTCHA Image Issues

45 threads Sep 16, 2025 Plugin → Really simple captcha

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If you're seeing a broken image, a red 'X', or a 404 error where your Really Simple CAPTCHA should be, you're not alone. This is one of the most common support issues for this plugin. The problem occurs when a web browser requests a CAPTCHA image, but the server cannot find the corresponding .png file in the expected temporary directory.

This guide will walk you through the most common causes and their solutions, based on community reports and fixes.

Why This Happens

Really Simple CAPTCHA dynamically generates image and text files in a temporary folder, typically wp-content/uploads/wpcf7_captcha/. For the image to display correctly, the web server must be able to both create these files and then serve them to visitors. The 404 error means that second part of the process is failing. This can be due to server configuration, file permissions, caching, or conflicts with other plugins or themes.

Common Solutions

1. Check and Fix File Permissions

The temporary CAPTCHA directory and its contents must be writable by the web server process. Navigate to your wp-content/uploads/ folder and ensure the wpcf7_captcha folder has permissions set to 755. The files inside should be set to 644. You can usually change this via your hosting control panel or an FTP client.

2. Investigate Caching Conflicts

Caching plugins (e.g., W3 Total Cache) or server-level caching (e.g., on WP Engine) can aggressively cache pages or block access to dynamically generated files. If the CAPTCHA works briefly after purging the cache but then breaks, caching is likely the culprit.

  • Solution: Configure your caching plugin to exclude the CAPTCHA temporary directory (/wp-content/uploads/wpcf7_captcha/) from all caching rules.

3. Examine the .htaccess File

The plugin creates an .htaccess file inside the temporary folder to protect the text files while allowing access to images. Sometimes, the rules in this file can conflict with other server settings.

  • Solution A: Temporarily rename or remove the .htaccess file in the wpcf7_captcha folder to see if it resolves the 403/404 error. If it does, you may need to adjust its rules. One user reported success by changing the <Files ~> directive to <FilesMatch>.
  • Solution B: Check your site's main .htaccess file for rewrite rules that might be intercepting requests for PNG files in the uploads directory.

4. Verify the GD Library

The plugin requires the PHP GD library with FreeType support to generate images. Most hosting environments have this enabled, but it's worth confirming with your host if you've ruled out other issues.

5. Move the Temporary Directory

If you are using a server cluster without sticky sessions or offloading uploads to a service like Amazon S3, the server that generates the image might not be the same server that tries to serve it, causing a 404.

  • Solution: You can define a constant in your wp-config.php file to force the plugin to use a specific, local directory that is consistent across all servers. The 'Really Simple CAPTCHA' team suggests using the WPCF7_CAPTCHA_TMP_DIR constant for this.

6. Check for Plugin and Theme Conflicts

Conflicts with other plugins, especially security, caching, or form plugins like Gravity Forms, can sometimes cause this issue. A conflict with your theme is also possible.

  • Solution: Temporarily switch to a default WordPress theme (like Twenty Twenty-One) and disable all other plugins. If the CAPTCHA works, re-enable plugins one by one to identify the conflict.

7. Clear Persistent Caches After a Site Move

If you recently moved your site to a new domain or server, old absolute file paths might be cached by WordPress or other plugins.

  • Solution: Flush any persistent caching mechanisms you have, including object caches. Simply saving your permalink settings again (Settings > Permalinks) can also help reset paths.

Conclusion

A 404 error on a Really Simple CAPTCHA image is almost always a server configuration issue. The most likely fixes involve adjusting file permissions, configuring caching rules, or modifying the .htaccess file. By working through these solutions methodically, you should be able to resolve the issue and get your CAPTCHA images displaying correctly again.

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