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Dell’s OneFS for Google Cloud. What do the competitors think? – Blocks and Files

June 1, 2020 | Author: admin

Last week, Dell Technologies announced Isilon scale-out filers in Google Cloud, which it has branded as OneFS for Google Cloud.

OneFS for Google Cloud is not a cloud-native offering. Netapps Azure NetApp Files, with ONTAP arrays running in Azure data centres, is a better comparison with Isilon hardware and its OneFs software running in GCP data centres.

With its customer-dedicated hardware, OneFS for Google Cloud is akin to a managed tenant offering, as NetApps John Rollason, senior director, global revenue marketing, tweeted: not a Cloud service as such, but more a (quite fast) traditional single tenant managed service.

Qumulo also offers its scale-out filesystem on Google Cloud Platform and as such can be considered a competitor for OneFS.

We asked Qumulo product director Molly Presley for her take on the Dells new service.

Blocks & Files: Dell has announced OneFS for Google Cloud.Does Qumulo have general views on this?

Molly Presley: Dell announced this relationship two years ago (2018) at EMCWorld as an early access program. They now are saying it is available in three countries. Essentially it is the same architecture that Isilon appliances have but co-located in the GCP data centers.

Blocks & Files: What do you see as the OneFS for Google Cloud advantages and disadvantages?

Molly Presley: The advantage is proximity to the cloud and a new more cloud-like consumption model. The fact that it took two years from the original announcement to get to this point would make one question how much adoption they have or why it has taken this long.

A disadvantage is that it appears this is simply Isilon appliances co-located or hosted in the GCP (Google Cloud Platform) data centers. Each customer is assigned their own hardware cluster. So this is similar to the NetApp/Azure relationship. They do not get the advantage of the economics, scale or speed of the massive GCP cloud architecture. And, customers will still suffer from the same architectural limitations inherent in Isilons file system (endless tree walks to do tiering jobs, no real time data visibility, inefficient small file storage).

Blocks & Files: An ESG study reported 200GB/sec aggregate read throughput and 121GB/sec aggregate write throughput for OneFS for Google Cloud. What do you think of these performance numbers [We identified Vendor X in the ESG document as NetApp and its Cloud Volumes for GCP. This provides cloud-native file services, such as NFS and CIFS, in GCP.]

Molly Presley: I asked our data scientist team to comment about the performance tests to see what kind of apples-to-apples we can provide for a Qumulo running cloud natively vs. the architecture Isilon tested.

Related to the performance paper from ESG.It seems ESGs methodology to compare a 2PB all-flash array to a small configuration of a NAS (no matter who Vendor X is) is flawed. I dont understand how they would see that as a relevant comparison for a benchmark or why it would be included in an otherwise quite solid write up. I also do not know who vendor x is.

However, creating a Qumulo configuration similar to the one benchmarked by ESG for Isilon, we would produce the following performance; 450GB/sec read throughput and 330GB/sec write throughput.

This is a good apples-to-apples comparison.

Isilon users get a single environment spanning on-premises deployments and Google Cloud with GCP compute able to process OneFS for Google Cloud-held data. Thats good news for those Isilon customers who want to burst compute to the public cloud. It also provides a potential platform for Isilon disaster recovery in Google Cloud.

Blocks & Files expects Dell EMC to add Power-style branding to Isilon, following the announcement of PowerStore as a unifying SC, XtremIO. Unity and VNX brand. Perhaps PowerScale is on the list.

We also expect OneFS to develop further to provide a better fit to the needs of a hybridising cloud and containerising enterprise IT environment. A porting of the software to Google Cloud or another public cloud would be in line with this.

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E-Discovery Preservation: What to Consider as Offices Open Back Up from COVID-19 – JD Supra

June 1, 2020 | Author: admin

Governments are easing their shelter-in-place orders and companies are beginning to determine what it means to open their spaces back up and let their employees come back in to the office. But, what does this mean from an e-discovery perspective?

Lets rewind a bit. In mid-March, companies were given little time to prepare to shut down their offices. In many cases, employees were given short notice to pack up what they needed to work from home and probably began using whatever devices they had. So, immediately, employees began to use their cell phones instead of their office phones. Some began to use their personal computers instead of, or in addition to, their office computers. And what about those thumb drives that were laying about the house? Yes, they started to use those too.

So what? Well, business did not completely shut down over the past few months and the documents employees created, accessed, and used during this time may become discoverable in later litigation. Like no time before, employees used their personal devices to do company business, and those personal devices will likely be discoverable in litigation. This will inevitably raise questions about whether those devices are in the custody, control or possession of the company, especially for employees that have departed the company. But, that is a fact determination based on the particular circumstances and roles of the employees, and a topic completely of its own.

Instead, lets consider what will need to be preserved and possibly collected in the event of future litigation. The best way to determine what needs to be preserved and collected is to ask the employees. Did they use personal laptops for work business? And if so, is there data saved on those laptops related to the work business? Whether the laptop and its contents need to be preserved and collected depends on the answers. In many cases, employees use their personal laptops as merely a portal to access on-line work accounts. If that is the case, and there are no documents on the personal computer, preservation and collection are likely not necessary. But, the questions need to be asked.

The same can be said about any external hard drives or cloud storage. The best way to determine what needs to be preserved and collected is to ask employees where they stored documents while they were working from home, and if they used any external hard drives, personal cloud drives, or any other storage media not maintained by, or even known to, the company.

Cell phones will be the treasure trove of potentially relevant data. Obviously, we expect to see an increase in relevant texts. If people have been sheltering in place, location data will likely be uninteresting. But, call history could be a valuable source of information like never before. When people worked in the office, cell phone use was hit and miss. Sometimes, people used their office phone and sometimes people used their cell phones. So, call logs were sometimes useful, but not essential, and they didnt show a complete picture. Now, with people relying almost exclusively on their cell phones, every phone call in or out has been logged. Who made each call and how long it lasted is maintained for every call. This will likely be a valuable source of information that has been only moderately valuable before.

And what about the technologies whose use exploded during this time? Thats right, what about your Zoom meetings, Google Meets, and Microsoft Teams video calls? Each one of those applications has the ability to record the meeting. Have any company meetings been recorded? If so, where are the copies? Who has them, and who is responsible for maintaining them? It is better to ask these questions now, while it is fresh on everyones mind, and so it doesnt sneak up on you later.

Though there are a lot of considerations going on now, preservation of potentially relevant documents is not high on the list. But, it should be. The easiest solution is to make this part of the process to re-enter the workplace. Companies should instruct their employees that as they close down their work-from-home office spaces, employees should move all of their work documents back to computers maintained by the company. Not only will this facilitate the use of these documents in the day-to-day business, but this will help the company keep track of its documents should there be legal issues down the road: employment, contract, trade secrets, etc. And, as for cell phones, they are still a valuable source of electronic discovery just more so now.

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Max Keiser: There Isn’t Anything Crypto Altcoins Do That Bitcoin Won’t Do – Bitcoinist

June 1, 2020 | Author: admin

Ever since the peak of the 2018 crypto bull market, Bitcoin has been front and center for most investors.

Bitcoin dominance the percentage of the cryptocurrency market made up of BTC has doubled from the 33% lows, while a number of altcoin projects have died out due to funding issues and a lack of public interest.

Even still, there remain thousands of projects cumulatively worth dozens of millions promising to be the next BTC or something along those lines.

But according to Max Keiser, the host of the Keiser Report on RT and one of the earliest Bitcoin bulls, these projects have no intrinsic value.

Speaking in a recent interview with London Real, Keiser doubled down on his long-held sentiment that altcoins provided little (if any) value over Bitcoin.

In response to the interviewer Brian Roses question if there is any cryptocurrency complementary to BTC, Keiser said no.

He explained that there is no coin out there that can do something that Bitcoin doesnt do already or will be able to do shortly. Bitcoins security, with a majority of the hash power and the majority of the crypto market share, also makes it a better bet than altcoins, Keiser added.

Keiser isnt alone in touting the sentiment that altcoins still pale in comparison to Bitcoin despite the technical developments and the billions of dollars worth of funding.

Kevin Rose, a co-founder of digital media site Digg and a general partner at True Ventures, recently told TechCrunch the following:

The problem is that 99% of the projects out there and a lot of the people who are behind them are just in this for the pure financial gain. And theres a lot of garbage out there. And thats unfortunate because it really drags down the high-quality projects, and it muddies the space quite a bit.

Rose led Google Ventures investment in Ripple that took place in 2013.

Stock trader/analyst Steve Burns, who has a following of over 200,000 on Twitter, echoed this sentiment. He said that he thinks 99.9% of altcoins are going to $0 [ over a] buy and hold timeframe, adding that he thinks so because they have zero value.

There is technical evidence to suggest that Bitcoin will outperform altcoins, too.

Perprevious reports from Bitcoinist,Josh Olszewicz, a Brave New Coin crypto analyst, observed on May 15th that Bitcoins dominance chart printed a textbook golden cross.

The arrival of the golden cross, the analyst suggested, is a sign that those awaiting an altcoin season may be rudely awakened.

Chart from Josh Olszewicz (@CarpeNoctum on Twitter), a crypto analyst at Brave New Coin. The chart is of Bitcoins dominance printing a golden cross formation.

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Ethereum Chart Makes It Clear: Altcoin Season Is Already Over | NewsBTC – newsBTC

June 1, 2020 | Author: admin

All throughout the crypto market, small-cap altcoins going on massive rallies brought back the return of talk about an impending altcoin season. However, a pair of coinciding sell signals triggering on Ethereum price charts likely brings what little, short-lived alt season that did take place to a conclusion already.

Although it has been primarily small-cap cryptocurrencies that have been going wild with returns over the last couple of weeks, it is still large-cap majors like Ethereum, XRP, and Litecoin that lead the rest of the crypto market, particularly altcoins.

These top crypto assets by market cap also ebb and flow based on their relationship with Bitcoin.

Nearly every altcoin on the market shares one half of a trading pair with not only USD but BTC. Due to this, analysts pay close attention to not only altcoin/BTC trading pairs but overall Bitcoin dominance.

Related Reading | BTC Dominance Signals Abrupt End to Crypto Altcoin Season

While USD trading pairs often provide analysts with information on the overall health of the crypto space and Bitcoin itself, BTC trading pairs give a better sense of how altcoins will perform relative to the first-ever cryptocurrency.

Ethereum being next in line in the top ten crypto assets by market cap and the most important altcoin often sees it serving as the gatekeeper in terms of alt gains against BTC.

When Ethereum surges against Bitcoin, the rest of the altcoin space usually goes on a run and vice versa.

On the ETH/BTC trading pair, Ethereum price charts show a bearish picture overall for altcoins.

Not only has the number two ranked, smart-contract focused cryptocurrency triggered a TD 9 sell setup on daily price charts, but the 9 candle closing at the current level will have confirmed a bearish top reversal formation according to the study of Japanese candlesticks.

While the candle formation doesnt perfectly match any of the typical reversal patterns, the setup is the same. A strong, green candle leading to a doji that shows indecision, followed by bears pushing prices back to below where things started.

The red candle must close 50% through the initial green candle to be confirmed as a valid formation. Moves like this completely erase all short-lived gains and often signal an extended change in a trend.

Related Reading | Crypto Analyst on Ethereum Downtrend: New Lows and Capitulation Are Coming

The TD 9 sell setup on the ETH/BTC pair only makes things worse for Ethereum and other alts. The highly accurate signal called Bitcoins $20,000 top, $3,200 bottom, and even triggered just ahead of the Black Thursday market crash that set records for among the worst drops ever experienced.

With a bearish reversal candlestick formation and a sell signal issued, all while a buy signal triggers on BTC dominance points to alt season being put off for a little while longer.

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Cardano and Ethereum Price Surge Alongside Bitcoin Will XLM Follow? – Cointelegraph

June 1, 2020 | Author: admin

The price of Bitcoin (BTC) has been trading in a defined range over the past weeks as the halving hype has passed. Bitcoins price action also led to increased volatility in altcoins and some of the smaller altcoins have been showing impressive strength. So far, Theta Token (THETA) and Band Protocol (BAND) have been heavy movers.

However, in the previous days, the larger cap altcoins have started to move up, with Cardano (ADA) and Ether (ETH) as the primary movers. As Bitcoin attempts to find a way back to $10,000, traders will closely watch to see if there is more to follow from these large cap altcoins.

Crypto market daily performance. Source: Coin360

ETH USDT 1-day chart. Source: TradingView

The daily chart is showing an evident compression between $195 and $215, which finally broke to the upside. Alongside that, the chart is also showing some critical metrics for further upward momentum.

Key indicators for bull or bear markets are the support above or below the 100-day and 200-day moving average. As long as the price of a certain asset continues to move above the moving averages the asset is in bull territory.

Why is that important? Throughout the entire previous bull cycle, the price of Ethereum remained above these indicators, leading to a peak of $1,400 in January 2018.

Notably, the volume is also massively increasing in recent periods, showing signs of accumulation as volume precedes price. A similar sign is shown on the altcoin market capitalization chart.

Altcoin market capitalization 1-day chart. Source: TradingView

The total market capitalization for altcoins is showing an impressive increase in volume, while the capitalization is also flipping the 100-day and 200-day MA for support.

As the chart is showing, the support is found at these MAs in which $68-$72 billion is an essential support.

Furthermore, the resistance is established at $113 and $136 billion. This is a vital resistance as the $113 billion level can be compared with the $6,000 floor of Bitcoin in 2018. The price of Bitcoin is now far above the $6,000 barrier, as its currently hovering between $9,100 and $10,000.

Therefore, its time for altcoins to start pacing up, and the next resistance levels are found at the $113 and $136 billion level. If the total market capitalization rallies towards the $136 billion level, that would mean a surge of 60% for the entire altcoin market capitalization.

ADA USDT 1-day chart. Source: TradingView

The strongest large-cap altcoin in the past week has been Cardano which has moved 30% in recent days. This last push made the cryptocurrency rally towards the levels from February 2020, through which all the losses of the March 12 market crash have vanished.

Whats behind this push? From a fundamental perspective, a new roadmap for the release of Shelley is complete, triggering a further rally on the price.

However, on the technical side, the price has been holding the 100-day and 200-day MA as support earlier. After that, the green area around $0.05 became support, which fueled the continuation of the upwards momentum.

Right now, the next resistance of this pair is found at $0.07, with a potentially exciting support level at $0.057-$0.06.

If the $0.057-$0.06 confirms as support, a potential continuation rally towards $0.07 and $0.09 as the next targets are on the tables.

Confluent with previous statements, Cardanos trading volume is also increasing this week. A possible explanation is that investors are jumping from Bitcoin towards altcoins as various projects are finally starting to release their products and platforms.

XLM USDT 1-day chart. Source: TradingView

Meanwhile, other large-caps are starting to show signals of potential upwards continuation as well. Cardano has been rallying in the previous days, Ether broke through $213-$215 as a key resistance level. Stellar Lumens (XLM) is also showing signals of potential continuation as well.

The green zone at $0.06-$0.0625 has to remain a support, but overall the structure is beginning to form a bullish pennant. This is due to the fact the price of Stellar Lumens continues to make higher lows, leading to a potential continuation to the upside.

The next primary target for Stellar Lumens is the resistance at $0.085-$0.087.

The ETH/BTC pair has been trading inside a range structure since the August-September of 2019. However, since its low in September 2019, the price has been making structural higher lows.

ETH BTC 1-day chart. Source: TradingView

Through that, the trend for ETH/BTC can be classified as an uptrend. What are the next significant hurdles for Ether?

First of all, a breakthrough above the 0.024 sats level should be beneficial for continuation. The 0.024 sats level is confluent with the 200-day MA and needs to be broken for a sustainable extension. As discussed, finding support above the 200-day MA is a vital indicator for further bullish momentum.

Once the price of Ether is above the resistance level (whether or not a retest of the 0.021 sats level occurs), a new higher high should be made.

By creating a new higher high, the price of Ether will finally break out of this range. If the 0.027 sats level is broken to the upside, the next target lies at 0.034 sats.

Where Ether is still fighting the moving averages, is ADA/BTC is already leading the pack and acting above them.

ADA BTC 1-day chart. Source: TradingView

The Cardano chart in the BTC pair is showing an apparent breakthrough in the resistance at 0.00000625 sats, after which the price rallied towards the next resistance at 0.00000680-0.00000700 sats.

This is the last hurdle before a further surge. Preferably, the price should come down for a retest of the 0.00000625-0.00000640 sats level for support.

However, once the price of ADA/BTC breaks through the 0.00000690 sats level, a further, mpre sustainable rally towards 0.00001000 - 0.00001070 sats level is on the table. Such a rally would mean a new surge of 60%-70%.

The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph. Every investment and trading move involves risk. You should conduct your own research when making a decision.

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Altcoins Outpace Bitcoin in Broad Crypto Rally: Cardano and Ethereum Biggest Gainers – The Daily Hodl

June 1, 2020 | Author: admin

Altcoins have taken the spotlight away from Bitcoin despite BTCs strong bounce in the last few days amid a broad crypto rally over the weekend.

Smart contract platform Cardano (ADA) is having an impressive week as the cryptocurrency is up nearly 12% at time of writing, printing a low of $0.64018 and a high of $0.07725 in the last 24 hours. ADA continues to surge days after Cardano creator Charles Hoskinson revealed the time frame for the launch of Shelley, which is Cardanos next major upgrade.

Cardano competitor Ethereum (ETH) is also spearheading the altcoin charge. The second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap is up over 5% at time of writing, posting a 24-hour low of $218.74 and a high of $244.05. The cryptocurrencys rally comes in the midst of anticipation of Ethereum 2.0s release.

Asset ranking platform Weiss Ratings highlights that altcoins were more bullish than Bitcoin in the week ending May 28. In the previous week, the Weiss Large-Cap Crypto Index which is made up of the 10 largest coins, dominated by Bitcoin, rose 3.14%. Meanwhile, the Weiss Mid-Cap Crypto Index is up 7.46% over the same stretch, led by Cardanos resurgence.

The financial ratings agency also notes the red hot performance of small-cap coins. The Weiss Small-Cap Crypto Index climbed by 15.22%, as highly speculative small-cap cryptocurrencies posted huge gains early in the week.

Bitcoin is currently trading at $9,597, up over 1% at time of writing.

Featured Image: Shutterstock/Chz_mhOng

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Yale Researchers Use Single-Cell Analysis and Machine Learning to Identify Major COVID-19 Target – HospiMedica

June 1, 2020 | Author: admin

Image: The Respiratory Epithelium (Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)

In the study, the scientists identified ciliated cells as the major target of SARS-CoV-2 infection. The bronchial epithelium acts as a protective barrier against allergens and pathogens. Cilia removes mucus and other particles from the respiratory tract. Their findings offer insight into how the virus causes disease. The scientists infected HBECs in an air-liquid interface with SARS-CoV-2. Over a period of three days, they used single-cell RNA sequencing to identify signatures of infection dynamics such as the number of infected cells across cell types, and whether SARS-CoV-2 activated an immune response in infected cells.

The scientists utilized advanced algorithms to develop working hypotheses and used electron microscopy to learn about the structural basis of the virus and target cells. These observations provide insights about host-virus interaction to measure SARS-CoV-2 cell tropism, or the ability of the virus to infect different cell types, as identified by the algorithms. After three days, thousands of cultured cells became infected. The scientists analyzed data from the infected cells along with neighboring bystander cells. They observed ciliated cells were 83% of the infected cells. These cells were the first and primary source of infection throughout the study. The virus also targeted other epithelial cell types including basal and club cells. The goblet, neuroendocrine, tuft cells, and ionocytes were less likely to become infected.

The gene signatures revealed an innate immune response associated with a protein called Interleukin 6 (IL-6). The analysis also showed a shift in the polyadenylated viral transcripts. Lastly, the (uninfected) bystander cells also showed an immune response, likely due to signals from the infected cells. Pulling from tens of thousands of genes, the algorithms locate the genetic differences between infected and non-infected cells. In the next phase of this study, the scientists will examine the severity of SARS-CoV-2 compared to other types of coronaviruses, and conduct tests in animal models.

Machine learning allows us to generate hypotheses. Its a different way of doing science. We go in with as few hypotheses as possible. Measure everything we can measure, and the algorithms present the hypothesis to us, said senior author David van Dijk, PhD, an assistant professor of medicine in the Section of Cardiovascular Medicine and Computer Science.

Related Links:Yale School of Medicine

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Machine learning helps Invisalign patients find their perfect smile – CIO

June 1, 2020 | Author: admin

The mobile computing trend requires enterprises to meet consumers' expectations for accessing information and completing tasks from a smartphone. But there's a converse to that arrangement: Mobile has also become the go-to digital platform companies use to market their goods and services.

Align Technology, which offers the Invisalign orthodontic device to straighten teeth, is embracing the trend with a mobile platform that both helps patients coordinate care with their doctors and entices new customers. The My Invisalign app includes detailed content on how the Invisalign system works, as well as machine learning (ML) technology to simulate what wearers' smiles will look like after using the medical device.

"It's a natural extension to help doctors and patients stay in touch," says Align Technology Chief Digital Officer Sreelakshmi Kolli, who joined the company as a software engineer in 2003 and has spent the past few years digitizing the customer experience and business operations. The development of My Invisalign also served as a pivot point for Kolli to migrate the company to agile and DevSecOps practices.

My Invisalign is a digital on-ramp for a company that has relied on pitches from enthusiastic dentists and pleased patients to help Invisalign find a home in the mouths of more than 8 million customers. An alternative to clunky metal braces, Invisalign comprises sheer plastic aligners that straighten patients' teeth gradually over several months. Invisalign patients swear by the device, but many consumers remain on the fence about a device with a $3,000 to $5,000 price range that is rarely covered completely by insurance.

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Why you must check out this online tool by a class 11 student that detects gender neutrality in textbooks – EdexLive

June 1, 2020 | Author: admin

Ananya Gupta

When Ananya Gupta told us about the tool that she developed, GRIT Parity (Gender Representation in Textbooks), to find out if textbooks are gender-neutral or not, we were surprised. We had to try it to believe it. So, we checked out her website gritparity.com and tried out thetool by uploading a Social Sciences textbook..The results stated that the textbook was not gender-neutral, in fact, around 96 per cent of the textbook used images and names of men and a small percentage of women. We were truly amazed by the tool but what amazed us even more that something so sophisticated was developed by a eleventh grader. And she developed the tool using her skills in Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence.Ananya, who developed an interest in Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence when she was in class VIII, says, "I loved these subjects to the extent that I started learning them on my own. I referred to several YouTube videos, signed up for free courses on Coursera, Udemy and many other websites. When I was in class VIIII, I developed a mobile application with the aim to solve the wet waste problem in Bengaluru. I also exhibited this app at Technovation and won a prize for it. It encouraged me to know more about these subjects. In the last two years, my desk has been full of books related to ML and AI."

But what led Ananya to develop GRIT Parity in the first place? A few months ago, she co-founded the GirlUP chapter at the International Business School. GirlUP is a global UN initiative to promote gender equality. Ananya used to visit government and low-income schools across the city to promote STEM education among young students. She explains, "My visits made me realise that there were deep thoughts of gender bias instilled in the minds of these children. I conducted a survey in these schools to find out why it existed and what they feel about themselves. I understood that the main reasons for these thoughts were the society at large, which is prejudiced against women, and textbooks as well."She continues, "I felt that our textbooks need to be revised because they show men doing various jobs whereas women were only restricted to activities like cooking, washing clothes and jobs like nurse, garbage collector etc. This text and teaching can affect young girls' lives and the career choices they make in the future. So, I decided to develop a tool that could help find out the gender neutrality percentage in any textbook. And it has been my dream to use ML and AI to make a social impact."

It is quite easy to use the GRIT Parity tool. Ananya, who took help from the mentors in the industry, says, "These days, textbooks are readily available in PDF format either on private or government websites. All you have to do is upload the PDF ingritparity.comand the tool analyses the textbook in three different ways. It shows the number of stories that have a majority of male characters, it shows careers that both genders are involved in and compares the number of images used in it." According to Ananya, a lot of girls who are talented are not able to achieve what they want due to a lack of confidence or because of the kind of prejudice they come across in society. She does not want to stop here as she believes that now it is time to make some changes to our textbook. "The first step towards changing this prejudice among students is to represent women in a better light and on par with men in textbooks. I am planning to work closely with the Government of Karnataka as well as the Education Minister to achieve this. I have a long way to go but there is no stopping me," she concludes.

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Why you must check out this online tool by a class 11 student that detects gender neutrality in textbooks - EdexLive

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Machine learning techniques applied to crack CAPTCHAs – The Daily Swig

June 1, 2020 | Author: admin

A newly released tool makes light work of solving human verification challenges

F-Secure says its achieved 90% accuracy in cracking Microsoft Outlooks text-based CAPTCHAs using its AI-based CAPTCHA-cracking server, CAPTCHA22.

For the last two years, the security firm has been using machine learning techniques to train unique models that solve a particular CAPTCHA, rather than trying to build a one-size-fits-all model.

And, recently, it decided to try the system out on a CAPTCHA used by an Outlook Web App (OWA) portal.

The initial attempt, according to F-Secure, was comparatively unsuccessful, with the team finding that after manually labelling around 200 CAPTCHAs, it could only identify the characters with an accuracy of 22%.

The first issue to emerge was noise, with the team determining that the greyscale value of noise and text was always within two distinct and constant ranges. Tweaks to the tool helped filter out the noise.

The team also realized that some of the test CAPTCHAs had been labelled incorrectly, with confusion between, for example, l and I (lower case L and upper case i). Fixing this shortcoming brought the accuracy up to 47%.

More challenging, though, was handling the CAPTCHA submission to Outlooks web portal.

There was no CAPTCHA POST request, with the CAPTCHA instead sent as a value appended to a cookie. JavaScript was used to keylog the user as the answer to the CAPTCHA was typed.

Instead of trying to replicate what occurred in JS, we decided to use Pyppeteer, a browsing simulation Python package, to simulate a user entering the CAPTCHA, said Tinus Green, a senior information security consultant at F-Secure

Doing this, the JS would automatically take care of the submission for us.

Green added: We could use this simulation software to solve the CAPTCHA whenever it blocked entries and once solved, we could continue with our conventional attack, hence automating the process once again.

We have now also refactored CAPTCHA22 for a public release.

CAPTCHAs are challenge-response tests used by many websites in an attempt to distinguish between genuine requests to sign-up to or access web services by a human user and automated requests by bots.

Spammers, for example, attempt to circumvent CAPTCHAs in order to create accounts they can later abuse to distribute junk mail.

CAPTCHAs are something of a magnet for cybercriminals and security researchers, with web admins struggling to stay one step ahead.

Late last year, for example, PortSwigger Web Security uncovered a security weakness in Googles reCAPTCHA that allowed it to be partially bypassed by using Turbo Intruder, a research-focused Burp Suite extension, to trigger a race condition.

Soon after, a team of academics from the University of Maryland was able to circumvent Googles reCAPTCHA v2s anti-bot mechanism using a Python-based program called UnCaptcha, which could solve its audio challenges.

Green said: There is a catch 22 between creating a CAPTCHA that is user friendly grandma safe as we call it and sufficiently complex to prevent solving through computers. At this point it seems as if the balance does not exist.

Web admins shouldnt, he says, give away half the required information through username enumeration, and users should be required to set strong pass phrases conforming to NIST standards.

And, he adds: Accept that accounts can be breached, and therefore implement MFA [multi-factor authentication] as an additional barrier.

RELATED New tool highlights shortcomings in reCAPTCHAs anti-bot engine

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