The Sounds of Cyber Threats

TL;DR

This paper explores the use of sonification to create auditory alerts for cyber-security threats, aiming to improve awareness and usability, especially for visually impaired users, through a dedicated methodology and case study.

Contribution

It introduces a sonification methodology for designing auditory cyber-threat indicators and demonstrates its application through usability testing with visually impaired users.

Findings

Auditory threat indicators can effectively warn users of cyber-attacks.

Sonification improves threat awareness for visually impaired users.

Usability testing shows positive user responses and potential for wider adoption.

Abstract

The Internet enables users to access vast resources, but it can also expose users to harmful cyber-attacks. This paper investigates human factors issues concerning the use of sounds in a cyber-security domain. It describes a methodology, referred to as sonification, to effectively design and develop auditory cyber-security threat indicators to warn users about cyber-attacks. A case study is presented, along with the results, of various types of usability testing with a number of Internet users who are visually impaired. The paper concludes with a discussion of future steps to enhance this work.