Welcome to the Website of the Usable Security and Privacy Group

The Usable Security and Privacy Group is part of the Research Institute CODE at the University of the Bundeswehr, Munich. The group is headed by Prof. Florian Alt.

We explore the design of secure and privacy-preserving systems that blend with the way in which users interact with computing devices. In particular, our research focuses on understanding users' behavior in security critical contexts, in building and enhancing security and privacy mechanisms based on users' behavior (behavioral biometrics)and physiology (physiological security) and in understanding and investigating threats that emerge from novel ubiquitous technologies (ubiquitous security). Specific application areas are mixed realitysmart homes, and social engineering.

In the context of our research we employ and enhance methods commonly known from Human-Computer Interaction. These include but are not limited to user-centered design and iterative prototyping. Our work is strongly centered around humans, making empirical approaches a fundamental part of our research. To understand behavior as well as to evaluate novel approaches, we conduct studies in the lab and in the field.

The group has won best paper and honorable mention awards at CHI, MobileHCI, IDC, and AmI. The research has been funded by the DFG, the ZD.B / Bavarian State Ministry for Education and Science, BMW, the Humboldt Foundation, the DAAD, Google, and the Telekom Innovation Labs.

Our website is meant to introduce the members of our team. In addition, it provides access to our publications and in-depth information on our research projects and topics. Students will find useful information on our courses, open theses, and guidance towards working with us. We offer the module "Usable Security" in the "Cyber Security" master program. If you are interested in writing a Bachelor or Master thesis with us, please visit the following page for topics.