Carnegie Mellon University
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A prototype user interface for coarse-grained desktop access control

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posted on 2000-09-01, 00:00 authored by A. Chris. Long, Courtney Moskowitz, Gregory R. Ganger
Abstract: "Viruses, trojan horses, and other malware are a growing problem for computer users, but current tools and research do not adequately aid users in fighting these threats. One approach to increasing security is to partition all applications and data based on general task types, or 'roles,' such as 'Personal,' 'Work,' and 'Communications.' This can limit the effects of malware to a single role rather than allowing it to affect the entire computer. We are developing a prototype to investigate the usability of this security model. Our initial investigation uses cognitive walkthrough and think-aloud user studies of paper prototypes to look at this model in the context of realistic tasks, and to compare different user interface mechanisms for managing data and applications in a role-based system. For most participants, our interface was simple to understand and use. In addition to a security model that is intrinsically useful, we believe development of this system will inform issues in the design and implementation of usable security interfaces, such as refinement of design guidelines."

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Copyright © 2000 by the VLDB Endowment. Permission to copy without fee all or part of this material is granted provided that the copies are not made or distributed for direct commercial advantage, the VLDB copyright notice and the title of the publication and its date appear, and notice is given that copying is by the permission of the Very Large Data Base Endowment. To copy otherwise, or to republish, requires a fee and/or special permission from the Endowment

Date

2000-09-01

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