Understanding the Experience-Centeredness of Privacy and Security Technologies

Abstract

The joint study of computer security, privacy and humancomputer interaction (HCI) over the last two decades has shaped a research agenda focused upon usable privacy & security. However, in HCI research more generally there has long been an awareness of the need to understand and design for user experience, in recognition of the complex and multi-faceted role that technology now plays in our lives. In this paper we add to the growing discussion by introducing the notion of experiencecentered privacy and security. We argue that in order to engage users of technology around issues related to experiences of privacy and security, research methods are required that may be outside of the normal repertoire of methods that we typically call upon. We describe three projects that developed non-typical research methods to reveal experiential insights into user interactions with privacy and security-related technologies. We conclude by proposing a research agenda that begins to illustrate how the discourse and methods of experience-centered design might serve to provide valuable alternative perspectives on new and enduring user-facing privacy and security problems.

Stories from Survivors

“…All participants gave informed consent and received a $100 gift card at the beginning of their session; the incentive amount was approved by the agencies and our organization's internal ethics review. For the remainder of the session, we used an experience-centered approach, focusing on participant experiences with technology and online privacy and security [17]. It consisted of a 5-question "ice breaker" survey about device and account use, a semi-structured interview about experiences related to digital privacy and security, and a card sort about their privacy and security practices.…”

“…Understanding the unique digital privacy and security experiences and challenges of such user populations is important for designers who wish to help them better navigate and deploy privacy and security controls online and on their devices. Furthermore, understanding the unique challenges of specific populations can help designers improve technology for both that specific population and the broader population [17].…”

Keeping Children Safe Online: Understanding the Concerns of Carers of Children with Autism

“…While our focus was on ASD, we felt that our results could be more broadly applicable. Our use of RPs to augment a traditional focus group discussion was motivated by similar approaches for novel user engagements to better understand their security and privacy needs [11,14].…”

In a New Land

“…As a result, we used collaborative collage as the method for engaging with participants and gathering data. Collaborative collage is one of the engagement tools termed "creative security methods" [19]. It uses collaging techniques to enable small groups to discuss research questions and present their views in a collage produced on paper.…”