Techniques for optimizing authentication challenges for detection of malicious attacks

A non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereon instructions for causing one or more processing units to execute a method comprising:

• receiving, from a client, an authentication request, wherein the authentication request is received in response to a redirect request sent from a remote server to the client;
• dynamically selecting at least one authentication challenge from a plurality of different authentication challenges wherein the selection of the at least one authentication challenge is based at least on an indication of ongoing attacks and an indication of a type of the ongoing attacks;
• sending the at least one selected authentication challenge to the client;
• determining whether a notification call is received from the client during a predefined time interval;
• and
• upon receiving the notification call during the predefined time interval, confirming that the client passes the at least one selected authentication challenge, wherein when the client passes the at least one selected authentication challenge the client is identified as a human-operated client.

A challenge machine for authenticating clients accessing computing resources, comprising:

• a processing circuitry;
• and
• a memory communicatively connected to the processing circuitry, the memory containing instructions that, when executed by the processing circuitry, configure the challenge machine to:
• receive, from a client, an authentication request, wherein the authentication request is received in response to a redirect request sent from a remote server to the client;
• dynamically select at least one authentication challenge from a plurality of different authentication challenges wherein the selection of the at least one authentication challenge is based at least on an indication of a type of ongoing attack;
• send the at least one selected authentication challenge to the client;
• determine whether a notification call is received from the client during a predefined time interval;
• and
• confirm, upon receiving the notification call during the predefined time interval, that the client passes the at least one selected authentication challenge, wherein the client that passes the at least one selected authentication challenge is identified as a human-operated client.

A method for authenticating clients accessing computing resources, comprising:

• receiving, from a client, a request to access a computing resource of a protected entity;
• generating a redirect request including a set of parameters;
• sending the redirect request to the client, wherein the redirect request causes the client to access at least one challenge machine;
• receiving, by the at least one challenge machine, an authentication request, wherein the authentication request is received in response to the redirect request;
• dynamically selecting at least one authentication challenge from a plurality of different authentication challenges by the at least one challenge machine for execution by the client wherein the selection of the at least one authentication challenge is based at least on an indication of ongoing attacks and an indication of a type of the ongoing attacks;
• generating an authentication object using the set of parameters included in the redirect request, wherein the authentication object is generated upon passing the at least one selected authentication challenge by the client, the passing being indicated by a notification call received from the client during a predefined time interval;
• and
• receiving, by a system, the authentication object from the at least one challenge machine;
• and
• upon determining that the authentication object is valid, authenticating the client.