Alexander Uskov

Information Security of IPsec-based Mobile VPN: Authentication and Encryption Algorithms Performance

Virtual Private Network (VPN) became one of the most reliable technologies to provide data security - protection, confidentiality, integrity, data origin authentication, replay protection and access control. Effectiveness of mobile VPN (MVPN) depends on multiple factors, including MVPNs selected architectural model, scheme model, topology model, levels of OSI model structure, authentication algorithms, encryption algorithms (ciphers), cipher operation modes, key management protocols, multiple parameters of security protocols, modes of operation and connection modes. This paper presents the outcomes of research project aimed at performance benchmarking of authentication and encryption algorithms for IPsec-based MVPNs.

Serious games, gamification and game engines to support framework activities in engineering: Case studies, analysis, classifications and outcomes

Recently many global well-known companies such as Microsoft, IBM, Oracle, Adobe, Cisco, Siemens, SAP, Google, Accenture, American Express, Caterpillar, PWC started an implementation of full-scale games and/or gamified applications to support their main business activities, processes and functions in “serious” areas such as management, simulations of complex physical objects and phenomena, engineering, project management, quality management, HR management, corporate training, marketing, and other areas. The particular objectives of performed multi-aspect research project on serious games and serious gamified applications in industry were to 1) identify and analyze best cases of use of serious games and gamification of main business processes in industry, 2) identify possible classifications of main types and attributes of serious games and serious gamified applications used in industry, and 3) identify serious game engines and platforms and classify their main features. This paper presents the research findings and outcomes relevant to specified project objectives.

Smart Gamification and Smart Serious Games

The nascent technologies—smart serious games and smart gamification—potentially present an effective fusion of smart technology and smart systems on one side, and applications of computer game mechanics in “serious” areas and gamification of business processes on the other side. They can combine the features and advantages of both areas, and, as a result, provide the end users with non-existing functionality, features and advances. This chapter is aimed to analyze current status of serious games and gamified applications in industry, examine “smartness” maturity levels of smart objects and systems, classify main components and features and present conceptual design model of smart serious games and smart gamified applications, identify technical skills required for a design and development of smart serious games and smart gamification of business, research and development processes and simulations.

Information security of mobile VPN: Conceptual models and design methodology

Virtual Private Network (VPN) is one of the most reliable technologies to provide data protection, confidentiality, integrity, data origin authentication, replay protection and access control [1]. An exponential growth of mobile computing, mobile networks, and mobile applications demand utilization of highly effective algorithms, models and sets of technical specifications of mobile virtual private network (MVPN) in terms of security, performance and cost. This paper presents the outcomes of 5-year long research, design, development and implementation activities aimed at engineering of practical MVPN solutions for various types of network users. It describes conceptual models and design methodology of information security of MVPN solutions, and provides network managers and/or system administrators with recommendations on engineering of specific IPsec MVPN solutions for various types of network users.

Smart University: Software Systems for Students with Disabilities

Smart universities, smart classrooms and smart education are the wave of the future in a highly technological society. One of the distinctive features of a smart university is its ability of adaptation to and smooth accommodation of various types of students/learners such as regular students and life-long learners, in-classroom/local and remote/online students/learners, regular students and special students, i.e. students with various types of disabilities including physical, visual, hearing, speech, cognitive and other types of impairments. This chapter presents the outcomes of an ongoing research project aimed at systematic identification, analysis, and testing of available open source and commercial text-to-voice, voice-to-text and gesture recognition software systems—those that could significantly benefit students with disabilities. Based on obtained outcomes of completed research and analysis of designated systems we identified and recommended top text-to-voice, voice-to-text and gesture recognition software systems for implementation in smart universities.

Fusion of Secure IPsec-Based Virtual Private Network, Mobile Computing and Rich Multimedia Technology

An application of IPsec stack of data exchange protocols in virtual private networks proved to be one of the most reliable and efficient security technologies to provide data protection, confidentiality, integrity, authentication, and access control in computer networks. This chapter presents the outcomes of multi-aspect research project aimed to design and develop IPsec-based mobile virtual private network environments for highly effective, in terms of both security and performance, communications in Web-based rich multimedia systems, including conceptual, design, architectural, and performance modeling of those systems.

Hands-On Teaching of Software and Web Applications Security

Well-educated and technically skilled engineers, developers and programmers of secure software and Web systems are in high demand in industry these days. As a result, there is a need for a design and development of learning content aimed, on one hand, at software and Web security concepts, models, methods, algorithms, schemes, technologies, techniques, and tools used to design, develop, deploy, and maintain highly secure software and Web systems. On the other hand, due to multiple reports by professional societies, agencies and consulting firms in information/data security, students should obtain deep knowledge and excellent hands-on technical skills for a reliable protection of real-world software, Web and computer information systems against advanced types of modern computer attacks (that are, sometime, called Attacks 2.0). The purpose of this paper is to present designed, developed and tested elements of “Software and Web Applications Security” undergraduate and graduate courses that are based on active hands-on teaching approach; it is focused on developed learning framework for each type of computer attack discussed. This framework includes 1) analysis of relevant vulnerabilities in software and Web systems; 2) an overview of computer attack; 3) demonstration of an attack in a real time in lab environment; 4) attacks step-by-step algorithm (procedure); 5) software implementation of an attack; 6) prevention of an attack and defense mechanism(s); 7) advanced types of an attack; and 8) relevant hands-on exercises.

National Science Foundation Project on advanced online education in information technology

The National Science Foundation (NSF) Course, Curriculum and Laboratory Improvement (CCLI) project # DUE-0196015 is aimed to develop innovative Web-based and screaming media-based teaching and learning technologies to be used in advanced online education in information technology (IT) curriculum. It is hosted by the InterLabs Research Institute (IRI) at Bradley University (Peoria, IL). Today, streaming media technology is one of key driving forces that help to transform traditional higher education from narrow, local, face-to-face, in-classroom, one-teacher-based type of education into a global. Web-based, technology-based, learner-centered type of education and training. This paper briefly describes NSF CCLl projects goals, developed Web-lecturing technology and developed online educational materials (OEMs) for advanced online undergraduate courses in IT area.

A new parameter adaptation method for Genetic Algorithms and Ant Colony Optimization algorithms

This Ant Colony Optimization algorithms and Genetic Algorithms are actively used in controller design, robotic path planning, design automation, biomedical imaging, data mining, and distribution network planning. This paper introduces a genetic algorithm implementation, an ant colony optimization algorithm implementation, and a method of adapting the parameters for the algorithms during the course of their execution whenever they cease producing better solutions. Additionally, it presents the results of experiments performed with and without the method applied. The obtained research outcomes clearly show that the method has the great potential to improve the solutions arrived at in both types of nature inspired algorithms, though the greater improvement is achieved whenever an algorithm tends to stagnate further from the theoretical optimum as happened with the genetic algorithm as compared to with the ant colony optimization algorithm.

A novel approach to avoiding early stagnation in Ant Colony Optimization algorithms

This paper introduces a novel approach to avoiding early stagnation in Ant Colony Optimization algorithms. The approach involves oscillating the α and β parameters out of phase with each other according to an offline adaptation formula triggered by the online signal of stagnation in improved solutions across iterations. Further, in this paper, we present the ex- perimental results obtained from applying this method to solving the Traveling Salesman Problem across eight fully connected, symmetric maps of sizes ranging from 51 to 1,400 cities, and show that a marginal improvement is achieved even with relatively constrained amounts of computation time and in the absence of fine-tuning of the ACO parameters towards each specific instance of the problem.