A computer equipped with signature-recognition software, which restric

Question

A computer equipped with signature-recognition software, which restricts access to a computer to those people whose signatures are on file, identifies a person's signature by analyzing not only the form of the signature but also such characteristics as pen pressure and signing speed. Even the most adept forgers cannot duplicate all of the characteristics the program analyzes.

Which of the following can be logically concluded from the passage above?

(A) The time it takes to record and analyze a signature makes the software impractical for everyday use.

(B) Computers equipped with the software will soon be installed in most banks.

(C) Nobody can gain access to a computer equipped with the software solely by virtue of skill at forging signatures.

(D) Signature-recognition software has taken many years to develop and perfect.

(E) In many cases even authorized users are denied legitimate access to computers equipped with the software.

ID: 500315

KarishmaB · Accepted Answer

"most" is for the degree of skill of forgers.

Even the most adept forgers cannot duplicate all of the characteristics the program analyzes.

(C) Nobody (even the most adept forgers) can gain access to a computer equipped with the software solely by virtue of skill at forging signatures.

The argument doesn't tell this at all. It just talks about forgers not being able to get in. Whether the system is just too sensitive is something we don't know.

GMATNinja · Answer

First of all, you don't want to  avoid  "extreme" language in inference questions. Rather, you need to be  careful  when analyzing choices with strong language. An answer choice with strong language, as we'll see here, can be perfectly fine if supported by the information in the passage.

You've interpreted this sentence as, "MOST adept forgers cannot duplicate...". That is not quite what the passage says. The passage says that "EVEN the  most-skilled  forgers cannot duplicate...". If that's not clear, consider this example:

"Most talented surgeons make a lot of money." - This is similar to your interpretation above. We are talking about most OF the talented surgeons.  
 "Even the most talented surgeons cannot do their jobs without the help of machines." - This is closer to what is said in the passage. The group in question is NOT "talented surgeons"; instead, we are only talking about the most-talented surgeons (a specific subset of the group of talented surgeons--the best of the best).

There are no forgers who are MORE adept than the MOST-adept forgers. So if the MOST-adept forgers cannot duplicate all of the characteristics, then no amount of forgery skill will allow you to duplicate those characteristics.

I hope that helps!

whamberto · Answer

I have picked the answer C for this question:

From the passage, there are 3 things that the software looks to identify an authentic signature:
1. Form of the signature
2. Pen Pressure
3. Signing Speed

Since the question stem is a MUST BE TRUE question, we can always look back at the passage to clarify our answer choice. I didn't even both prephrasing because there are too many possibilities - in this case I jumped straight into the answer choices.

A. Nowhere in the passage do we talk about the software being impractical for use.

The structure of the argument is: 
1. Describes how the software identifies signature
2. Explains how forgers can't duplicate all characteristics to gain access

So, it is clear that this answer choice incorrect.

B. Where do we mention installation of software in most banks? Yea, I thought so...definitely incorrect.

C. This answer choice is correct because it describes how forgers cannot obtain access simply by copying "The form of the signature." In order to get access, you need all 3 components: form, speed and pen pressure.

D. Nowhere do we mention the time it took to develop this software. Incorrect.

E. Although this answer may look correct, there are a few things to mention here:

1. The first 3 words "In many cases," sounds to me like most of the time, authorized users are denied access. This wording is quite strong and I cannot find it anywhere in the passage where users are denied access "in many cases."

2. From the passage, can we even prove that users are ever denied access? There is nothing suggesting that they are ever denied access - this software could be perfect.

Therefore, answer choice E may or may not be true. So, this answer is incorrect.

OC2910 · Answer

hello
why E is not correct
i thought option C is very bold 
it states any hacker cannot hack means no one ,dont gmat prefers general answers than too strong extremities

abhimahna · Answer

"identifies a personâ€™s signature by analyzing not only the form of the signature but also such characteristics as pen pressure and signing speed." is the key line to answer this question.

We are told that this technique makes use of others things as well while analyzing the signature.

So, if one forges the signature and doesn't know the speed/pressure, it would almost be impossible for that person to dig into the system.

So, C clearly states this idea that only forging signature is not going to help.

E is wrong because it is actually weakening the premise by stating that the technique used by software is not helpful as it has not taken into account the point mentioned in E.

Remember on GMAT, a premise is always a source of truth that cannot be denied.

anairamitch1804 · Answer

Argument Construction

Situation Forgers cannot duplicate all the characteristics that signature-recognition software analyzes, including the form of a signature, pen pressure, and signing speed. Computers
equipped with this software restrict access to those whose signatures are on file.

Reasoning What conclusion can be reached about computers equipped with this software? The passage states that the software detects more characteristics in a signature than the most accomplished forger can possibly reproduce. Thus, skill at forging signatures is not enough to allow someone to gain access to a computer equipped with the software.

A No information about the speed of the analysis is given, so no such conclusion can be drawn.

B Although the software would likely be of benefit to banks, we cannot conclude that it will be installed in most banks because the passage doesn't rule out, e.g., that the software may be too costly or that there may be proprietary constraints.

C Correct. This statement properly identifies a conclusion that can be drawn from the passage.

D Although it seems reasonable to think that the software took a long time to develop, nothing in the passage justifies the claim that it took years.

E Nothing in the passage rules out the possibility that the software functions so well that authorized users will never be denied legitimate access to computers equipped with the software.

The correct answer is C.

adkikani · Answer

GMATNinjaTwo   generis   GMATNinja   VeritasPrepKarishma

In an inference question,  usually  we avoid EXTREME words
in answer choices since we are looking for a MUST BE TRUE statement.
Argument says:  Even the most adept forgers  cannot duplicate all of the characteristics the program analyzes.
which means 51 - 91 % of adapt forgers cannot duplicate all of the characteristics the program analyzes.

Option C says:
 Nobody can gain access to a computer equipped with the software solely by virtue of skill at forging signatures

How could I infer C from above reasoning?

Can you provide more concrete reasoning to reject (E)

CAMANISHPARMAR · Answer

Hi  jennpt  - I selected (C) but I was not confident about usage of "nobody" in (C) - pls guide me!!

BrightOutlookJenn · Answer

Hi CAMANISHPARMAR It's good to be suspicious of extreme language like "nobody". However, we have some extreme evidence that will allow us to choose it: The paragraph says "even the most adept forgers" cannot master all of the things the software is analyzing and thus fool the software. Luckily this is a really broad statement that includes all the best forgers in the world, period. (The text did not give us a group that might be incomplete. For example, "the winners of a forging contest" or "the top graduates from Signature Forgery University"

... Those would be groups that might be missing a hidden talent, and there could be some kid sitting in Dubai or a lady in San Francisco who are just ridiculously good but no one knows about their talent. But the text gave us a broad statement that includes the best forgers in the world - and this would include people who aren't even famous.) So if even the best forgers in the world can't fool the software with their forging, then no one can fool it - at least by forging. C leaves the door open that there might be other ways to fool the software, which is another mark of a good answer: it limits itself to what we know about here, which is forging. Hope this helps. Let me know. Best, Jenn

Chelsea212 · Answer

This question highlights the exact type of logic that I have struggled with correcting in my head. It's considered an 'easy' question, and so I thought I'd contribute a post here for both my own learning. Also, I often times find that just reading different perspectives on here helps me get a better grasp on a question and it's respective solution, so I'm trying to do my part =)

I was quickly able to widdle this problem down to two possible options (C) and (E). Answer choice (C) sounded awful on point; however, I was really attracted to option (E). I almost treated it as a fill in the blank with the spirit of "fill in the next step forward". With that, I thought "well if a signature is so hard to forge because the machine scrutinizing it is also measuring things like pressure/speed etc., then it seems very possible that authorized people might get rejected like a false positive.

I let this problem marinade in my head throughout my day, and as I read and re-read our resident expert responses, I think I'm slowly coming to the 'ah hah' moment that I need to have. If you had difficulty between options (C) and (E), maybe this will help. For me, I had to realize, yet again, the prompt states  which of the following can be logically concluded  from the above  . The word 'above' in the prompt is quite literal, and the logical conclusion would be that since men the most adept forgers can't duplicate all of the characteristics, nobody can gain access to a computer equipped with the software solely by virtue of their forgery skills. By this logic, I'm not bringing anything new into the passage.

However, if we are looking at answer choice (E), 'authorized users' are brought up and this population is not addressed anywhere in the passage. What made this choice appeal to me though was that I conflated 'authorized users' with 'signatures on file'. As soon as I realized that I did this, the correct answer, (C), became very obvious to me.

Please feel free to let me know if anything was confusing. Hopefully I did more good than harm but contributing to this discussion. Thanks everyone for posting!

TheUltimateWinner · Answer

GMATNinja 
Sir,
Could you explain a bit the  highlighted  part, please?
Thanks_

GMATNinja · Answer

Sure thing!

Consider some alternate examples:

"Even the strongest weightlifters cannot lift more weight than our robotic crane." 
  "Even the most experienced human chess players cannot beat this new computer chess player." 
  "Even the most skilled hackers cannot break the adaptive encryption algorithm."

Each of these sentences presents the BEST members of one particular group (weight lifters, human chess players, hackers), then states that those best-in-class individuals CANNOT outperform or defeat some other thing (robotic crane, computer chess player, adaptive encryption algorithm).

In other words, no matter how strong, experienced, or skilled these individuals are, they (and the rest of their group) will NEVER do better than the opponents that are listed.

Now, here's the original statement from the passage again:

By definition, if we've identified the MOST adept forgers, then it is impossible for any other forger to be more adept than those who are most adept.

This means that NO forgers are adept enough to duplicate all of the characteristics the program analyzes, and NO amount of forgery skill will enable a forger to outsmart that program.

I hope this helps!

Bikki · Answer

Understanding & Analyzing the Passage

“ A computer equipped with signature-recognition software .”

• The passage talks about a computer that is equipped with signature – recognition software. 
• It is a type of software that acts as a security measure by analyzing a signature and its characteristics before allowing access to the user.

“which restricts access to a computer to those people whose signatures are on file.” 
 
• This signature – recognition software restricts access to a computer to people who have signatures on file. This means that the software analyses different characteristics of a signature and then gives access to a user.

“identifies a person’s signature by analyzing not only the form of the signature but also such characteristics as pen pressure and signing speed.” 
 
How does this software work? 
• The software analyses the form of the signature, pen pressure, and signing speed to determine whether the signature is legit or not.

“Even the most adept forgers cannot duplicate all of the characteristics the program analyses.” 
 
• The author states that the SRS (Signature Recognition Software) cannot be bypassed, even by people who are good at forging signatures since the software analyses various characteristics of a signature.

Pre - thinking

We need to find a logical conclusion for the argument.

Let’s first analyze the premise of the argument to draw a logical conclusion. 
• SRS restricts access to a computer whose signature is on file. 
• The software (SRS) identifies a signature via three key characteristics: 
o Analyses the form of the signature 
o Analyses the pen pressure 
o Analyses the signing speed. 
• And even adept forgers cannot duplicate the characteristics of a signature that the software analyses. 
Thus, we can logically conclude that the SRS software ensures that people with the skill to bypass or cheat, cannot gain access to the computers equipped with SRS. 
 
  Analyse the Answer Choices

(A) The time it takes to record and analyze a signature makes the software impractical for everyday use.   INCORRECT  
o The practicality of the software is not talked about in the passage. The passage talks about the features and the result of the software. There is no information about the time and practicality of the software. Thus, this option cannot be the conclusion. 
 
(B) Computers equipped with the software will soon be installed in most banks.   INCORRECT  
o Although the software is a security measure, we cannot be certain that most banks would install this software. This option provides information that is out of scope since the passage does not talk about the software being installed or used in most banks. 
 
(C) Nobody can gain access to a computer equipped with the software solely by virtue of skill at forging signatures.   CORRECT  
o This option is in line with our pre-thinking. As stated in the passage, even adept forgers will not be able to duplicate the signatures without getting caught by the software. 
 
(D) Signature-recognition software has taken many years to develop and perfect.   INCORRECT  
o This option talks about the time taken to develop the software, which is again out of scope since nothing about this is stated in the passage. Thus, no information in the passage can justify this claim. 
 
(E) In many cases even authorized users are denied legitimate access to computers equipped with the software.   INCORRECT  
o This option gives information that cannot be backed by any point in the passage. The passage does not give information about the experience of authorized users. Thus, this option is out of scope.

krndatta · Answer

KarishmaB  Ma'am,

Please evaluate my reasoning for option E.

(E) In many cases even authorized users are denied legitimate access to computers equipped with the software.

We can eliminate option E on the basis that we don’t know the success rate of the software. 
By success rate I mean, out of 10 times I login, how many times would the software let me in. 
Hence, we cannot conclude that will legitimate users be denied access or not?

KarishmaB · Answer

All I can conclude from the given argument is that forgers will not be able to access based on their forgery skill alone (perhaps combined with technical skills, if they are able to disable the software, they may be able to access - we don't know and we are not given).
Whether legit users can recreate the same signature pattern along with the same pressure and speed etc every time, we are not given. So we can say nothing about how convenient or inconvenient it will be for legit users to use. Hence we cannot infer (E).

krndatta · Answer

KarishmaB  Ma'am, 
Option E is talking about being denied access by the software or not. How is convenient to use related to this? 
Can you please elaborate. 
The passage does not talk about any skills of forgers. How can we conclude that? 
Please elaborate on this too.

KarishmaB · Answer

Please note that the argument is looking for an inference - something you can infer from the given data. It should give no new information.

The argument tells us "Even the most adept forgers cannot duplicate all of the characteristics the program analyzes."
That no matter what the skill level of forgers, they cannot duplicate all characteristics analysed. We need to take it to be true. 
So we can conclude that no matter what their skill level, they cannot access another's computer by forging the signature. This is option (C)

We cannot infer (E) from the argument. The argument doesn't mention whether people are able to duplicate all characteristics every time they try to legit access their own computers. The argument mentions nothing about people accessing their own systems. It only comments on forgers trying to access other people's systems. 
So (E) cannot be a conclusion of the argument.

Dinesh654 · Answer

Hello experts,  ThatDudeKnows   AndrewN

First of all its a conclusion question or inference question (for inference we need to stick strictly to what is given),

I thought we have to come up with a conclusion,
Since author is focusing on - how sophisticated the software is because of pressure and speed

Hence author can further say that since its so advance and strict

In many cases even authorized users are denied legitimate access to computers equipped with the software. E could be right!

How to attempt a conclusion question, Is the process same as Inference?
because if we approach this as an inference question C is absolutly correct.

AndrewN · Answer

Hello,  dcoolguy . I would not worry too much about the label attached to the question: you will not be granted that luxury on test day anyway. Rather, focus on just what the question stem is asking you to do:

This is definitely a type of inference question. In fact, I could see another question swapping out  concluded  for  inferred , with no other changes. (In general, when your task is to supply a conclusion, the last line cuts off mid-sentence.)

On the basis of the final sentence of the passage, we can deduce that (C) must be correct:

Answer choice (E) could be true, but nothing in the passage suggests that  authorized users  are ever  denied legitimate access . The assertion at the end of the passage names  forgers  only, so we need to stick to forgers to avoid speculation.

Perhaps the question makes a bit more sense to you now. Thank you for thinking to ask.

- Andrew

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