Usable Security Apps By Leveraging End Users
USABLE is building feedback loops around the globe by connecting at-risk communities with digital security trainers, usability experts, and security tool developers, bringing a human centered design approach to digital security software supporting more vulnerable populations around the world.
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Digital security tools have evolved in response to the wide variety of challenges human rights defenders face in extreme environments, but adoption of these tools is often not as high as we would like. The goal of the USABLE project is to scale adoption of better security practices enabled by security and privacy tools for the highest risk communities around the globe by making security tools user-friendly and relevant to their respective communities, welcoming users from diverse backgrounds and technical skill levels.
Any tool, no matter how secure, leaves users insecure if it is too difficult to use. Adding a strong usability component to digital security tools reduces the risk of human error, but more importantly it unlocks the potential to scale across networks and more broadly.
USABLE connects communities world-wide with leading UX experts and digital security tool developers through in-person interactions and engagements aimed to build better technology, and create lasting, re-usable user personas for others to incorporate.
The USABLE project also has launched the UXFund, a small pool of targeted funding to support open source projects improve the usability of their products, especially for high risk users. Further user engagement will be supported this summer, where a number of different stakeholders will be brought together for the UXForum where private sector, human rights, and open source communities convene to tackle the challenging problems we face in making security more usable for those who need it most.
USABLE starts with community building to create concrete outputs and usability enhancements.
Learn about our needs assessment process, training approach, and user persona generation. Check out the blog for learnings so far!
A multi-day usability and Internet Freedom deep-dive bringing together activists, trainers, developers and UX experts; Summer 2018.
The application process will open soon!
Call for participation
Engaging the first 4 communities
Connected community needs with tools, trainers, and designers
Commmunity-led prioritizing usability changes and themes
Open fund for human-centered design based usability enhancements
Open fund for human-centered design based usability enhancements
Commmunity-led prioritizing usability changes and themes
Commmunity-led prioritizing usability changes and themes