Frontier AI has broken the open CTF format • Hacker News Board

Re: Frontier AI has broken the open CTF format

#491

Post by mannanj » Tue, May 19, 2026, 2:46 PM UTC

funimpoded wrote: post #284

SquareWheel wrote: post #276

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Personally, I forget syntax all the time. There's always a warm up period after I switch languages, and it takes me longer to be start writing good, idiomatic code. Like sure, I can probably write some python, but will it be pythonic? I might still be Java-minded for a while, trying to OOP my way into solutions. Earlier today I needed to write some PHP and couldn't remember if it used length, count, or size. I had to…

Same, I can't pass any test that relies on getting syntax correct. If you want me to fizzbuzz on a whiteboard in a language I've been writing dozens or more of lines of per day for a year up to and including the day before, and require that I don't mess up the syntax, I reckon I've got a coin-flip chance of passing at best (meanwhile, sure, of course the actual logic of fizzbuzz isn't tricky for me) I once got the me…

Right, so I wonder, have you noticed or found or experienced any better interview processes? I wonder how we can't just filter out companies that require us to do this sort of hand waving and party tricking behavior or like "because we can't figure out a better way to do this". I reckon maybe a simple filter statement before any interviews, to the recruiters "Hey I don't do xyzzy" would help - though working on the tuning of the language.

I've also started requiring minimum of $300/hr compensation for interviews of my time, newly, so far no success though I'm fine with dying on that bridge or requiring at least a new type of interview process.

Re: Frontier AI has broken the open CTF format

#492

Post by mannanj » Tue, May 19, 2026, 2:48 PM UTC

Gigachad wrote: post #320

mannanj wrote: post #227

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I first did fizz buzz about 10 years ago fresh out of college. Now, after 10 years in full stack and fully vibe coding, I forgot basic python syntax. An interview like yours would have false positives if you are checking for syntax because well, its like looking up spelling, I just ask the AI for the syntax inline.

You would not have been a good fit for this position in that case.

Maybe I would have done well to define "basic".

If I can do well beyond the requirements of the work position, and the issue is how they are testing my fit is not an accurate representation of the work and tools and environment I'd have access to while doing the work, then its not about "fitting" the position but instead an indication of a poor job fit process.

Re: Frontier AI has broken the open CTF format

#493

Post by voxl » Tue, May 19, 2026, 4:54 PM UTC

globnomulous wrote: post #487

voxl wrote: post #272

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The reality is that a human will learn, given any materials including LLMs, but only if they truly desire to learn. We've had MOOCs, gigantic libraries, all full of free information. You can obtain a PhD level understanding in any technical field of your choice today just by consistently going to the library and consistently applying yourself. It's not unlike going to the gym, and we see how many people do that regul…

> The reality is that a human will learn, given any materials including LLMs, but only if they truly desire to learn. We've had MOOCs, gigantic libraries, all full of free information. You can obtain a PhD level understanding in any technical field of your choice today just by consistently going to the library and consistently applying yourself. Not true. In every field there is guild knowledge that a person can't ac…

If you've never taught students or mentored PhD students please refrain from diatribes in my comments (and yes I've done both)

Re: Frontier AI has broken the open CTF format

#494

Post by jaffa2 » Tue, May 19, 2026, 7:51 PM UTC

arm wrote: post #120

jaffa2 wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Capture the flag the only expansion of CTF that i know but even if it is capture the flag this still doesnt make any sense. Like Quake CTF?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capture_the_flag_(cybersecurit...

thanks for the context! Any of which was completely absent from the article or the comments when I posted originally.

Re: Frontier AI has broken the open CTF format

#495

Post by globnomulous » Wed, May 20, 2026, 12:17 AM UTC

voxl wrote: post #493

globnomulous wrote: post #487

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The reality is that a human will learn, given any materials including LLMs, but only if they truly desire to learn. We've had MOOCs, gigantic libraries, all full of free information. You can obtain a PhD level understanding in any technical field of your choice today just by consistently going to the library and consistently applying yourself. Not true. In every field there is guild knowledge that a person can't ac…

If you've never taught students or mentored PhD students please refrain from diatribes in my comments (and yes I've done both)

The comment isn't a diatribe, and your experience as a teacher and advisor does not make your argument correct, let alone make your request any less a nonsequitur. If I disagree with you, I will always, I promise, say so. Asking that I 'please refrain' is just supercilious and silly.

It's also arguably a violation of Hacker News' guidelines:

> Please don't sneer

> Please don't post shallow dismissals

Re: Frontier AI has broken the open CTF format

#496

Post by voxl » Wed, May 20, 2026, 12:22 AM UTC

globnomulous wrote: post #495

voxl wrote: post #493

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you've never taught students or mentored PhD students please refrain from diatribes in my comments (and yes I've done both)

The comment isn't a diatribe, and your experience as a teacher and advisor does not make your argument correct, let alone make your request any less a nonsequitur. If I disagree with you, I will always, I promise, say so. Asking that I 'please refrain' is just supercilious and silly. It's also arguably a violation of Hacker News' guidelines: > Please don't sneer > Please don't post shallow dismissals

[flagged]

Re: Frontier AI has broken the open CTF format

#497

Post by [deleted] » Wed, May 20, 2026, 12:29 AM UTC

voxl wrote: post #493

globnomulous wrote: post #487

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The reality is that a human will learn, given any materials including LLMs, but only if they truly desire to learn. We've had MOOCs, gigantic libraries, all full of free information. You can obtain a PhD level understanding in any technical field of your choice today just by consistently going to the library and consistently applying yourself. Not true. In every field there is guild knowledge that a person can't ac…

If you've never taught students or mentored PhD students please refrain from diatribes in my comments (and yes I've done both)

[deleted]

Re: Frontier AI has broken the open CTF format

#498

Post by globnomulous » Wed, May 20, 2026, 7:02 AM UTC

voxl wrote: post #496

globnomulous wrote: post #495

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The comment isn't a diatribe, and your experience as a teacher and advisor does not make your argument correct, let alone make your request any less a nonsequitur. If I disagree with you, I will always, I promise, say so. Asking that I 'please refrain' is just supercilious and silly. It's also arguably a violation of Hacker News' guidelines: > Please don't sneer > Please don't post shallow dismissals

[flagged]

[dead]

Re: Frontier AI has broken the open CTF format

#499

Post by RealCodingOtaku » Wed, May 20, 2026, 8:55 AM UTC

ajam1507 wrote: post #485

RealCodingOtaku wrote: post #474

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You meant 5 acronyms, and each are links, which contains their abbreviations. So they do follow the guideline.

An acronym is an abbreviation, and they specifically do not spell out the very first acronym on the page the first time they use it.

An acronym is a specific type of abbreviation formed from the initial letters of a phrase and pronounced as a single word. I was being more specific. And the ones you are pointing out are from the header.

> An abbreviation whose expansion is provided the first time the abbreviation appears in the content

Content is the main body of the article (press tab ones you land the page, it will take you to the main content if you don't know what that is), which contains only one Acronym, “SC 3.1.4” → which is a link that take you to a place with its definition. I don't understand what you are fighting over. But I'm not going to reply more to someone who defends people who do not know how to write articles that are more friendly towards the reader.

Re: Frontier AI has broken the open CTF format

#500

Post by legacynl » Wed, May 20, 2026, 11:23 AM UTC

archi42 wrote: post #475

legacynl wrote: post #461

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Rules that ask people not to use LLMs are ignored and almost impossible to enforce in open online events. That's such a non-reason. If your competition cannot enforce the rules of the competition, then what's the point? Does the CTFs specifically need to be 'open'?

I don't get your reasoning? You're agreeing with the author but are not? The author argues that open CTFs are done for because of rampant cheating. You're agreeing with that, don't you? The title is "AI has broken the open CTF format". If the format is "open CTF" then it is very specifically open. As to your second question: Yeah, I believe having open CTFs was a good idea.

ah my bad. You're right, the author specifically states 'OPEN CTFs'. I think that keyword slipped my mind by the time I was at the end of the article.

So my question then becomes, what will realistically be lost if CTFs move to a form that requires teams and individuals to sign up?