diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 46c46e4..2e6b2e0 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -57,7 +57,10 @@ Scripts: `npm run build`, `npm start`, `npm run typecheck`, `npm test`.
 
 `/contact` posts to `app/api/contact/route.ts`, which validates the
 submission (honeypot, time-to-submit, rate limit, consent) and emails it over
-SMTP with Nodemailer, the same way 2060.io-website does. Recipients come from
+SMTP with Nodemailer, the same way 2060.io-website does. A submission dropped
+by the honeypot or the timing check still answers success to the browser, but
+the pod log says why (`[contact] dropped: ...`); a delivered inquiry logs
+`[contact] <topic> inquiry emailed`. Recipients come from
 `CONTACT_TO` with per-topic overrides (`CONTACT_TO_CAREERS`, ...). Career
 applications attach the PDF the candidate uploads. With `MAIL_HOST` unset the
 form accepts and logs submissions without delivering them.
diff --git a/app/api/contact/route.ts b/app/api/contact/route.ts
index 8ee77be..3e9dbc5 100644
--- a/app/api/contact/route.ts
+++ b/app/api/contact/route.ts
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@ export const dynamic = "force-dynamic";
 const MIN_MESSAGE = 50;
 const MAX_MESSAGE = 4000;
 const MAX_CV_BYTES = 10 * 1024 * 1024;
+const MIN_ELAPSED_MS = 2500;
 
 // Naive in-memory rate limit: the deployment runs a single replica, so a
 // per-process map is a sufficient best-effort guard (same as 2060.io-website).
@@ -83,12 +84,21 @@ export async function POST(req: NextRequest) {
     return NextResponse.json({ ok: false, error: "bad_request" }, { status: 400 });
   }
 
-  // Honeypot: a filled hidden field means a bot. Pretend success, do nothing.
-  if ((data.website_hp ?? "").trim() !== "") return NextResponse.json({ ok: true });
+  // Honeypot: a filled hidden field means a bot. Pretend success, do nothing,
+  // but say so in the log: a silent drop once hid a real problem.
+  if ((data.hp_check ?? "").trim() !== "") {
+    console.info("[contact] dropped: honeypot filled");
+    return NextResponse.json({ ok: true });
+  }
 
-  // Time-to-submit: human submissions take more than a couple of seconds.
-  const renderedAt = Number(data.rendered_at);
-  if (Number.isFinite(renderedAt) && Date.now() - renderedAt < 2500) return NextResponse.json({ ok: true });
+  // Time-to-submit: human submissions take more than a couple of seconds. The
+  // browser reports its own elapsed time; comparing a browser timestamp with
+  // this server's clock dropped every visitor whose clock ran ahead.
+  const elapsed = Number(data.elapsed_ms);
+  if (Number.isFinite(elapsed) && elapsed >= 0 && elapsed < MIN_ELAPSED_MS) {
+    console.info(`[contact] dropped: submitted after ${Math.round(elapsed)} ms`);
+    return NextResponse.json({ ok: true });
+  }
 
   const topic = (data.topic ?? "").trim();
   const name = (data.name ?? "").trim();
diff --git a/app/components/ContactForm.tsx b/app/components/ContactForm.tsx
index 0cf0cc3..059564b 100644
--- a/app/components/ContactForm.tsx
+++ b/app/components/ContactForm.tsx
@@ -38,11 +38,6 @@ export default function ContactForm({ defaultTopic = "", careers = false }: { de
     e.preventDefault();
     const form = e.currentTarget;
 
-    const honeypot = (form.elements.namedItem("website_hp") as HTMLInputElement)?.value;
-    if (honeypot) {
-      setStatus("success");
-      return;
-    }
     if (!form.checkValidity() || message.trim().length < MIN_MESSAGE) {
       form.reportValidity();
       setErrorMsg(t("form.validation", { min: MIN_MESSAGE }));
@@ -58,7 +53,8 @@ export default function ContactForm({ defaultTopic = "", careers = false }: { de
     }
 
     const fd = new FormData(form);
-    fd.set("rendered_at", renderedAt);
+    // Time on the page, measured here so the server never compares two clocks.
+    fd.set("elapsed_ms", String(Date.now() - Number(renderedAt)));
     fd.set("locale", locale);
     fd.set("consent", (form.elements.namedItem("consent") as HTMLInputElement)?.checked ? "true" : "false");
 
@@ -97,10 +93,12 @@ export default function ContactForm({ defaultTopic = "", careers = false }: { de
         </div>
       )}
 
+      {/* Honeypot: off screen, never autofilled. The name avoids every word
+          browser autofill matches (website, url, company...), and the field
+          is only inspected by the API, which also logs the drop. */}
       <div aria-hidden="true" style={{ position: "absolute", left: "-9999px", top: "auto", width: 1, height: 1, overflow: "hidden" }}>
-        <label>{t("form.honeypot")} <input name="website_hp" tabIndex={-1} autoComplete="off" /></label>
+        <label>{t("form.honeypot")} <input name="hp_check" tabIndex={-1} autoComplete="off" data-lpignore="true" data-1p-ignore="true" data-bwignore="true" /></label>
       </div>
-      <input type="hidden" name="rendered_at" value={renderedAt} readOnly />
       <input type="hidden" name="locale" value={locale} readOnly />
 
       <div>