# rfp agent browser automation failed on govwin login captcha: how to fix it

Captchas are designed to stop automation, so the agent must not try to solve them. Detect the captcha, pause, and let a human solve it in the same session.

```text
rfp agent browser automation failed on govwin login captcha
```

## When to use this skill
- Agent stalls at a GovWin captcha
- Agent retries login endlessly at the captcha step

## When not to use this skill
- Credentials are rejected (an auth issue)
- Captcha never appears for humans (a session issue)

## Tool compatibility
Agent captcha handoff. Related area: browser automation.

Related area: proposal automation and agent-assisted RFP workflows.

Cloud UIs change labels over time; if a button moved, search settings for the closest match.

## Before you start
- Sign in to the tool and keep one tab open so sessions stay clean
- Copy the exact error text and note the time it happened
- Set aside 15 to 20 minutes; most of these resolve in a single pass

## Quick diagnosis
Make sure this is the right skill before you invest the 15 minutes.
- If you are dealing with agent stalls at a GovWin captcha, start at step 1 below.
- If instead credentials are rejected (an auth issue), stop here; you need a different skill.
- If neither quite matches, compare your screen against the verbatim error block at the top; that block is exactly what this skill covers.

## Fix it in steps
### 1. Detect the captcha explicitly

```
Check for the captcha widget after the login form submits.
```
Expected: Expected: agent names the captcha state instead of timing out.

### 2. Pause and notify a human

```
Stop and tell the human the captcha needs solving.
```
Expected: Expected: human knows which session to open.

### 3. Human solves the captcha

```
The human completes the captcha in the agent browser session.
```
Expected: Expected: login proceeds past the challenge.

### 4. Agent continues after login

```
Agent resumes from the logged-in state.
```
Expected: Expected: run completes.

## Confirm each step worked
Run through this checklist before moving on. If a check fails, redo that step instead of pushing ahead.
- Step 1 (detect the captcha explicitly): Expected: expected: agent names the captcha state instead of timing out.
- Step 2 (pause and notify a human): Expected: expected: human knows which session to open.
- Step 3 (human solves the captcha): Expected: expected: login proceeds past the challenge.
- Step 4 (agent continues after login): Expected: expected: run completes.

## Quick recap
1. Detect the captcha explicitly
2. Pause and notify a human
3. Human solves the captcha
4. Agent continues after login

## Still stuck?
Gather three things: the exact error text, the time it happened, and what changed just before it broke.
Check the vendor status page for an active incident. Then open a support ticket with those three things;
it cuts the back-and-forth in half. For agent runs, attach the last 50 lines of the agent log too,
since the loop or timeout signature in the log usually names the cause.

## Variant phrasings
### agent govwin captcha failed
Human handoff is the fix. If this matches what you saw, the steps above apply as written.

### agent stuck govwin login captcha
Detect and pause. If this matches what you saw, the steps above apply as written.

## Why it happens
Captcha solving by agents is both unreliable and against the intent of the control. Explicit detection plus human handoff is the legitimate pattern; retry loops just burn the session.

## Edge cases
- Never use captcha-solving services on a client portal; it violates terms
- Some portals remember trusted sessions; solve once and reuse the session
- Schedule captcha-prone logins when a human is available

## Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_AD123FaKe3knAyloV25WXw