Fix forms that look broken or get too much spam

  • troubleshooting
  • gravity-forms
  • spam
  • recaptcha

When a Gravity Forms form has odd spacing or fields that look off, the usual cause is a setting called Enable legacy markup. Form spam is a separate problem, covered below.

New to forms? Start with Gravity Forms basics.

Fix a form that looks broken

Forms created in older versions of Gravity Forms can still use the old layout, which Dirigible's styles don't match.

  1. Go to Forms and open the form that looks wrong.
  2. Open Settings → Form Settings.
  3. Turn Enable legacy markup off.
  4. Save the form, then check it on the page. Some older field layouts shift a little.
  5. Repeat for each form that looks broken. The setting is per form.

Don't see Enable legacy markup? Gravity Forms hides it when no forms use the old layout. In that case the setting isn't the problem.

Why spam still gets through

Most Dirigible contact forms use Google reCAPTCHA (the "I'm not a robot" check) plus a hidden trap field that catches bots. Together they block most automated spam.

They can't stop:

  • A real person who passes the check and types junk
  • Paid services that solve reCAPTCHA challenges for spammers

Stricter filtering starts blocking real customers too. A little spam in the inbox is better than missing a real inquiry.

To clear out old spam entries, use Forms tools under Dirigible → Tools & Maintenance.

Keep forms short. Extra fields don't stop spam, but they do stop real people from finishing.