Security Usability Challenges for End-Users

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Author(s): Steven Furnell (Centre for Information Security & Network Research, University of Plymouth, UK)
Copyright: 2009
Pages: 24
Source title: Social and Human Elements of Information Security: Emerging Trends and Countermeasures
Source Author(s)/Editor(s): Manish Gupta (State University of New York, USA)and Raj Sharman (State University of New York, USA)
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-60566-036-3.ch012

Keywords: Information Science Reference / Information Security & Privacy / IT Security and Ethics / Security & Forensics

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Abstract

This chapter highlights the need for security solutions to be usable by their target audience, and examines the problems that can be faced when attempting to understand and use security features in typical applications. Challenges may arise from system-initiated events, as well as in relation to security tasks that users wish to perform for themselves, and can occur for a variety of reasons. This is illustrated by examining problems that arise as a result of reliance upon technical terminology, unclear or confusing functionality, lack of visible status and informative feedback to users, forcing users to make uninformed decisions, and a lack of integration amongst the different elements of security software themselves. The discussion draws upon a number of practical examples from popular applications, as well as results from survey and user trial activities that were conducted in order to assess the potential problems at first hand. The findings are used as the basis for recommending a series of top-level guidelines that may be used to improve the situation, and these are used as the basis assessing further examples of existing software to determine the degree of compliance.

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