I’m working on a Python script using Playwright to automate ChatGPT interactions through the browser since I can’t pay for the OpenAI API right now. The problem is that Cloudflare keeps showing those security challenges and blocking my automation.
I’ve already tested several approaches like switching between headless and normal browser modes, changing the User-Agent string, adding the playwright-stealth plugin, putting in random delays, and saving cookies. Nothing seems to work consistently.
Does anyone know reliable methods to get around this? I’m especially interested in proxy solutions, ways to make the browser look more authentic, or any specific tips for command line usage. Any working bypass techniques would be really helpful.
Thanks for any suggestions!
I’ve been dealing with similar Cloudflare issues for the past year across different automation projects. The problem with ChatGPT specifically is that they’ve implemented multiple layers of protection that go beyond standard bot detection. From my experience, the most effective approach has been using browser profiles that have genuine browsing history rather than fresh instances. I create profiles by manually browsing various sites for several hours before attempting any automation. The fingerprinting detection also checks for WebGL, canvas rendering, and timezone consistency, so make sure these elements match your proxy location if you’re using one. Another technique that helped was implementing realistic pause patterns between actions - not just random delays, but pauses that correlate with the complexity of the content being processed. However, I should mention that even with these methods, success rates fluctuate as Cloudflare updates their detection algorithms. You might want to consider rate limiting your requests to just a few per session and rotating between multiple prepared browser profiles.
Cloudflare has gotten much more sophisticated at detecting automated browsers lately. I ran into the same issue about six months ago when trying to scrape some sites for research purposes. The key thing I learned is that modern anti-bot systems look at dozens of behavioral patterns beyond just user agents and cookies. What worked for me was using residential proxies combined with much slower interaction patterns. Instead of focusing on bypassing detection, I started mimicking real human behavior more closely - things like mouse movements, scroll patterns, and realistic typing speeds. Also consider using undetected-chromedriver instead of Playwright for this specific use case, as it has better evasion capabilities built in. Honestly though, you might want to look into alternative approaches. Some people have had success using browser extensions that interact with ChatGPT differently, or finding other free AI services that are more automation-friendly. The cat-and-mouse game with Cloudflare protection gets exhausting pretty quickly.
honestly cloudflare detection has become pretty brutal recently. i tried similar stuff last month and kept hitting walls. one thing that sorta worked was using selenium-wire with rotating user agents every few requests, but even that’s inconsistent now. maybe look into chatgpt alternatives like claude or perplexity that might be less protected? just my 2 cents