Software design beyond usable security

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Computer security has long been important in system design and administration, but e-commerce and social computing mean it is now a matter of concern to everyone. Design for security in system and network infrastructure is still essential, but there is now also a need for design so everyone can ensure and control their own security and privacy via increasingly critical software: password systems and managers, firewalls, anti-virus monitors, website validity indicators, and so on. The field of "usable security" has emerged with a focus on making security software easier to use. While ease of use is important, there is a growing realization that the issues turn out to be more complex. This research project will explore interaction design principles for making security software not only easy to use, but also leading to more secure results. As well as the appropriate users, security software is available to attackers, and the design must assist the appropriate users while not giving any advantage to attackers. The design possibilities for password systems offer several examples: small password spaces assure an easy memory load for users, but allow exhaustive search for attackers; user choice allows passwords memorable to users, but leads to passwords guessable by attackers; password cues can help users recall their passwords, but can also assist attackers. Even pragmatic approaches such as lockout on failure have undesirable consequences, such as denial of service attacks, and still allow broad attacks attempting to gain access to all accounts. Our recent research has identified several strategies for addressing such issues that suggests new design principles. In particular, we have devised techniques to influence users to select stronger but memorable passwords, and found ways to provide covert feedback to appropriate users that is not meaningful to attackers. The objective of the proposed research program is to explore such techniques, develop general design principles, and address a broader range of security software.