Web-Art Login Shield with reCAPTCHA vs Login Delay Shield

Web-Art Login Shield with reCAPTCHA protects WordPress authentication, Elementor Login widgets and Elementor Forms. It provides optional Google reCAPTCHA v2/v3, IP lockouts, Advanced login URL protection, IP blocking and REST/XML-RPC protection. It preserves WordPress core authentication logic. No ads, author telemetry or external dashboard. All modules are opt-in and disabled by default. Key Features reCAPTCHA v2/v3 selectable v2 checkbox or v3 score-based verification protection for wp-login.php, Elementor Login and Elementor Forms server-side token, action, score and hostname validation where applicable configurable v3 score threshold one active type at a time configuration verification before activation Elementor support protection for Elementor Login and Elementor Pro Forms native Elementor reCAPTCHA fields are skipped to avoid duplication v2 alignment controls login errors and lockouts remain inside the Login widget dynamic content and Elementor popup support Login Protect per-IP failed-attempt counting and temporary lockouts safe concurrent-request handling active-lockout countdown local security event log with bounded retention optional REST API, Application Password and XML-RPC protection independent operation with or without reCAPTCHA Advanced login URL optional custom login endpoint protection of default login routes while preserving required public actions logout and password-link compatibility emergency wp-config.php recovery constant IP allowlists and blocking separate reCAPTCHA allowlist and Login Protect trusted IP list permanent IP blocking for public site requests with HTTP 403 optional IP | reason notes XML-RPC hardening Optional blocking of: pingback.ping pingback.extensions.getPingbacks system.multicall Security Model Protected flows use fail-closed handling. If an enabled check cannot be completed safely, the request is rejected instead of bypassing protection. Login Protect preserves active lockouts and safely handles concurrent requests. Setting Maximum login attempts or Lockout duration to 0 disables lockout enforcement. All modules remain disabled until enabled. Recovery constants are available in wp-config.php for selected modules. External Services This plugin integrates with Google reCAPTCHA v2 and v3, services provided by Google LLC. reCAPTCHA is disabled by default. Google scripts or verification requests are used only after an administrator enables reCAPTCHA or runs a settings-page verification test. Google’s reCAPTCHA JavaScript (https://www.google.com/recaptcha/api.js) may load on protected wp-login.php requests, pages containing protected Elementor widgets or forms, and the settings page during a verification test. Allowlisted visitors bypass frontend loading where applicable. When reCAPTCHA runs, the visitor’s browser connects directly to Google. Google may process browser, device and interaction information and may set the necessary _GRECAPTCHA cookie under its policies. For server-side verification, the plugin sends the token, configured Secret Key and visitor IP address when available to Google’s siteverify endpoint. It does not include usernames, passwords, email addresses or form contents in that request. The plugin sends no telemetry, analytics or usage data to its author. Google policies: https://policies.google.com/privacy https://policies.google.com/terms Privacy Locally stored security data may include: IP addresses, failed-attempt counts and lockout timestamps a username or email associated with an IP lockout recent events containing an IP address, username or email, source, type and timestamp the latest reCAPTCHA configuration or transport error used for diagnostics permanent IP blocklist entries and optional notes Inactive Login Protect entries become eligible for deletion after seven days. Active lockouts remain until expiry. The event log is limited to 30 entries and 30 days. WordPress privacy tools export or erase records matched to the requested email address or associated account. Unmatched IP-only records remain subject to retention and administrator cleanup. Permanent blocklist entries remain until removed by an administrator. Plugin data can be removed during uninstall when uninstall cleanup is enabled. Legal reCAPTCHA is a trademark of Google LLC. Elementor is a trademark of Elementor Ltd. This plugin is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Google LLC or Elementor Ltd.

WordPress is one of the most widely used content management systems on the internet, making it a frequent target for bots and hackers attempting brute-force attacks. A brute-force attack works by systematically trying passwords until finding the correct one. Login Delay Shield defends against this by adding a configurable delay after each failed login attempt. Since successful logins are never delayed, legitimate users experience no slowdown. This approach is particularly effective against bots that send thousands of login requests, as each failed attempt forces the attacker to wait before trying the next password. Features: Distributed attack detection — spot credential-stuffing that rotates IPs, which per-IP lockouts miss. Security Setup Wizard — Choose Conservative, Balanced, or Aggressive protection profiles from the settings page Login delay — Fixed or random delay on failed login attempts (1-10 seconds) Progressive delay — Delay increases with each consecutive failed attempt from the same IP IP lockout — Temporarily block IP addresses after too many failed attempts Username-aware lockout strategy — Choose IP only or IP + username to reduce false positives on shared networks Login feedback — Shows remaining attempts before lockout and a lockout countdown when blocked IP whitelist — Bypass all security measures for trusted IPs (supports CIDR notation) Email notifications — Receive alerts when failed login thresholds are reached Failed login log — Track all failed attempts with a dashboard widget showing recent activity, 7-day trends, and top targeted usernames fail2ban logging (optional) — Write fail2ban-compatible failed-login and lockout lines to a safe log file XML-RPC protection — Apply delays to XML-RPC authentication or block it entirely Password reset protection — Apply delays, lockouts, and logging to password reset submissions without revealing account existence Custom login URL — Move the login page to a custom URL to reduce automated bot traffic targeting /wp-login.php Country blocking (optional, developer integration) — Block login authentication from selected country codes. Ships no GeoIP database; requires a resolver hooked to the wldelay_resolve_country_code filter to supply the visitor country Emergency recovery URL (optional) — Generate a secret link that clears the lockout for your own IP, so you can get back in even with no admin, shell, or file access Log retention — Automatic cleanup of old log entries (configurable retention period) Accessible admin interface — WCAG 2.1 compliant with keyboard navigation and screen reader support Multilingual — Translated into 18 languages including French, German, Spanish, Japanese, Chinese, Arabic, and more Lightweight and compatible with other security plugins Free means free Login Delay Shield has no ads, no upsells, no premium tier, and no account or API key requirement. Every admin notice is dismissible, and the plugin never nags you to upgrade — there is nothing to upgrade to. You can always get back in A security plugin that locks out its own administrator is worse than no security at all. Login Delay Shield is built so an admin can always recover access: Whitelisted IPs (including CIDR ranges) bypass every delay and lockout The Active Lockouts manager on the settings page lists current lockouts with a one-click Unlock for each, plus an “Unlock Current IP” action The optional Emergency Recovery URL — a secret link you save in advance — clears your own IP lockout even when you have no admin, shell, or file access WP-CLI recovery commands: wp wp-login-delay unlock-ip and wp wp-login-delay flush-lockouts Lockouts are always temporary (24 hours maximum) — there are no permanent bans This plugin is not a complete security solution — dedicated security plugins offer more comprehensive protection. However, Login Delay Shield adds an effective layer of defense that works alongside your existing security measures without conflict. Note: This plugin was formerly known as “WP Login Delay”. Contribute Found a bug or want to suggest an improvement? Open a thread in the support forum on WordPress.org. Want to help translate the plugin into your language? Visit translate.wordpress.org.