When I conducted a Google search today, Google displayed the error page “To continue, please type the characters below:” and blocked my search results.
Here is what the complete error message looks like:
Our systems have detected unusual traffic from your computer network. Please try your request again later. Why did this happen?
This page appears when Google automatically detects requests coming from your computer network which appear to be in violation of the Terms of Service. The block will expire shortly after those requests stop.
This traffic may have been sent by malicious software, a browser plug-in, or a script that sends automated requests. If you share your network connection, ask your administrator for help — a different computer using the same IP address may be responsible. Learn more
Sometimes you may see this page if you are using advanced terms that robots are known to use, or sending requests very quickly.
This traffic may have been sent by malicious software, a browser plug-in, or a script that sends automated requests. If you share your network connection, ask your administrator for help — a different computer using the same IP address may be responsible. Learn more
Sometimes you may see this page if you are using advanced terms that robots are known to use, or sending requests very quickly.
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I cleared the cookies from my browser and now things are fine... :)
If you don't see a CAPTCHA image or if you continue to encounter the CAPTCHA over and over, try these steps in order:
- Check for malware on your computer.
Malicious software, sometimes bundled with other free downloads without your knowledge, can trigger Google to show this message. We've suggested some well-known programs below that can detect and remove such applications. Please remember that we have no connection with these companies and can't guarantee their effectiveness.
The Starter Edition of Spyware Doctor is included free with the Google Pack
If these programs don't resolve the problem, you might want to try an advanced troubleshooting program such as HijackThis.
- Contact your network administrator.
If you tried the steps above and haven't resolved the issue, it's very likely that a user or a computer in your network is sending automated traffic to Google. Your network administrator may be able to locate and shut down the source of the automated traffic; feel free to refer them to this page. Sending automated queries of any sort to Google is against our Terms of Service. This includes, among other things, the following activities:
- Using any software that sends queries to Google to determine how a website or webpage ranks on Google for various queries
- 'Meta-searching' Google
- Performing 'offline' searches on Google
Once the automated traffic has stopped, the ban on your IP address should be automatically lifted.
- If the problem persists, your network administrator should contact us.
