botcha 0.3.0

BOTCHA Python SDK - Prove you're a bot. Humans need not apply.

BOTCHA Python SDK

Prove you're a bot. Humans need not apply.

BOTCHA is an anti-CAPTCHA system designed to keep humans out and let AI agents in. This Python SDK provides a simple interface for AI agents to solve BOTCHA challenges and access protected endpoints.

Installation

pip install botcha

Quickstart

from botcha import BotchaClient

async with BotchaClient() as client:
    response = await client.fetch("https://api.example.com/agent-only")
    print(response.json())

That's it! The client automatically handles token acquisition, challenge solving, and authentication.

API Reference

BotchaClient

HTTP client with automatic BOTCHA challenge solving and JWT token management.

Constructor

BotchaClient(
    base_url: str = "https://botcha.ai",
    agent_identity: Optional[str] = None,
    max_retries: int = 3,
    auto_token: bool = True
)

Parameters:

• base_url (str): Base URL for the BOTCHA service. Default: "https://botcha.ai"
• agent_identity (str, optional): Custom agent identity string for User-Agent header
• max_retries (int): Maximum number of retries for failed requests. Default: 3
• auto_token (bool): Automatically acquire and attach Bearer tokens. Default: True

Methods

async fetch(url: str, **kwargs) -> httpx.Response

Make an HTTP GET request with automatic BOTCHA handling.

Features:

• Automatically acquires and attaches Bearer token (if auto_token=True)
• Retries once on 401 (Unauthorized) with fresh token
• Solves inline challenges on 403 (Forbidden) responses

Parameters:

• url (str): URL to fetch
• **kwargs: Additional arguments passed to httpx request

Returns: httpx.Response object

Example:

async with BotchaClient() as client:
    response = await client.fetch("https://api.example.com/data")
    data = response.json()

async get_token() -> str

Acquire or return cached JWT token.

Implements token caching with 5-minute buffer before expiry. If token is cached and valid, returns the cached token. Otherwise, acquires a new token via the challenge flow:

1. GET /v1/token to receive challenge
2. Solve challenge problems
3. POST /v1/token/verify with solutions
4. Parse and cache JWT token

Returns: JWT token string

Example:

async with BotchaClient() as client:
    token = await client.get_token()
    print(f"Token: {token}")

solve(problems: list[int]) -> list[str]

Solve BOTCHA challenge problems synchronously.

Parameters:

• problems (list[int]): List of 6-digit integers to solve

Returns: List of 8-character hex strings (SHA256 hash prefixes)

Example:

client = BotchaClient()
answers = client.solve([123456, 789012])
print(answers)  # ['8d969eef', 'ca2f2c8f']

async close() -> None

Close the underlying HTTP client. Automatically called when using async context manager.

---

solve_botcha(problems: list[int]) -> list[str]

Standalone function to solve BOTCHA speed challenges without needing a client instance.

Parameters:

• problems (list[int]): List of 6-digit integers to solve

Returns: List of 8-character hex strings (SHA256 hash prefixes)

Example:

from botcha import solve_botcha

answers = solve_botcha([123456, 789012])
print(answers)  # ['8d969eef', 'ca2f2c8f']

Usage Examples

Basic Usage with Auto-Token

The simplest way to use BOTCHA - the client handles everything automatically:

import asyncio
from botcha import BotchaClient

async def main():
    async with BotchaClient(base_url="https://botcha.ai") as client:
        # Client automatically acquires token and solves challenges
        response = await client.fetch("https://api.example.com/agent-only")
        print(response.json())

asyncio.run(main())

Manual Token Acquisition

If you need more control over token management:

import asyncio
from botcha import BotchaClient

async def main():
    async with BotchaClient(auto_token=False) as client:
        # Manually acquire token
        token = await client.get_token()
        print(f"Acquired token: {token}")
        
        # Use token in custom requests
        response = await client.fetch(
            "https://api.example.com/data",
            headers={"Authorization": f"Bearer {token}"}
        )
        print(response.json())

asyncio.run(main())

Standalone Solver

Use the solver without creating a client instance:

from botcha import solve_botcha

# Solve challenges independently
problems = [123456, 789012, 456789]
answers = solve_botcha(problems)

print(f"Problems: {problems}")
print(f"Answers: {answers}")
# Problems: [123456, 789012, 456789]
# Answers: ['8d969eef', 'ca2f2c8f', 'c888c9ce']

Custom Agent Identity

Set a custom User-Agent header for your bot:

import asyncio
from botcha import BotchaClient

async def main():
    async with BotchaClient(agent_identity="MyBot/1.0") as client:
        response = await client.fetch("https://api.example.com/data")
        print(response.json())

asyncio.run(main())

Inline Challenge Handling

The client automatically handles inline challenges (403 responses):

import asyncio
from botcha import BotchaClient

async def main():
    async with BotchaClient() as client:
        # If the endpoint returns a 403 with a BOTCHA challenge,
        # the client automatically solves it and retries
        response = await client.fetch("https://api.example.com/protected")
        
        # You get the successful response without manual intervention
        print(response.json())

asyncio.run(main())

Error Handling

Handle errors gracefully:

import asyncio
import httpx
from botcha import BotchaClient

async def main():
    try:
        async with BotchaClient() as client:
            response = await client.fetch("https://api.example.com/data")
            response.raise_for_status()
            print(response.json())
    except httpx.HTTPError as e:
        print(f"Request failed: {e}")
    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Unexpected error: {e}")

asyncio.run(main())

How It Works

BOTCHA is a speed challenge designed to prove computational capability:

1. Challenge Generation: Server generates a list of 6-digit integers
2. Solving: Client computes SHA256 hash of each integer and returns the first 8 hex characters
3. Verification: Server validates solutions within the time limit (typically 10 seconds)
4. Token Issuance: Upon successful verification, server issues a JWT token

Why it works:

• Fast for bots: Modern computers can solve thousands of challenges per second
• Slow for humans: Manual calculation is impractical
• Simple to implement: Standard SHA256 hashing, no complex cryptography
• Stateless: No session management required

Security properties:

• Solutions cannot be precomputed (random challenges)
• Time-limited to prevent delayed solving
• JWT tokens expire to limit attack windows
• No brute-force protection needed (humans self-exclude)

Type Hints

This package includes type hints (PEP 484) and ships with a py.typed marker for full type checking support in IDEs and tools like mypy.

Requirements

• Python >= 3.9
• httpx >= 0.27

Development

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/dupe-com/botcha.git
cd botcha/packages/python

# Create virtual environment
python -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: .venv\Scripts\activate

# Install development dependencies
pip install -e ".[dev]"

# Run tests
pytest tests/ -v

# Run type checking
mypy src/botcha

Links

• Website: https://botcha.ai
• Repository: https://github.com/dupe-com/botcha
• Issues: https://github.com/dupe-com/botcha/issues
• PyPI: https://pypi.org/project/botcha/

License

MIT License - see LICENSE for details.

Author

Ramin [e-mail]