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Password Managers in a Home Computer Environment

Björk, Emil LU and Pieslinger, Pontus LU (2020) SYSK16 20201
Department of Informatics
Abstract
Passwords are one of the most used tools for authentication. Because of this, password managers have been developed to allow for increased protection and usability when managing passwords. However, the research of password managers in the context of usability coupled with diffusion of technology is unclear. Thus, the study’s purpose is to investigate how usability influences management of and the motivation to use PMs diffused among users. This is done by analysing data using the key concepts of usability and diffusion of technology via the theoretical models Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology and Diffusion of Innovation. The study is based on a survey with 120 respondents, where the focus has been to investigate the... (More)
Passwords are one of the most used tools for authentication. Because of this, password managers have been developed to allow for increased protection and usability when managing passwords. However, the research of password managers in the context of usability coupled with diffusion of technology is unclear. Thus, the study’s purpose is to investigate how usability influences management of and the motivation to use PMs diffused among users. This is done by analysing data using the key concepts of usability and diffusion of technology via the theoretical models Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology and Diffusion of Innovation. The study is based on a survey with 120 respondents, where the focus has been to investigate the relationship between the key concept to gather descriptive statistical data using multiple choice questions. It is found that individuals preferred including numbers instead of capital letters or special symbols in their passwords. Furthermore, it is also concluded that home computer users value ease of use over protection in the usability-security trade off in password managers. Following these findings, the study suggests that the focus of password managers should lie on usability to gain recognition among users. (Less)
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author
Björk, Emil LU and Pieslinger, Pontus LU
supervisor
organization
course
SYSK16 20201
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
Information Systems, Information Technology, Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology, Diffusion of Innovation, Password Manager.
report number
INF20-023
language
English
additional info
The authors contributed equally to the study.
id
9015478
date added to LUP
2020-06-26 13:59:38
date last changed
2020-06-26 13:59:38
@misc{9015478,
  abstract     = {{Passwords are one of the most used tools for authentication. Because of this, password managers have been developed to allow for increased protection and usability when managing passwords. However, the research of password managers in the context of usability coupled with diffusion of technology is unclear. Thus, the study’s purpose is to investigate how usability influences management of and the motivation to use PMs diffused among users. This is done by analysing data using the key concepts of usability and diffusion of technology via the theoretical models Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology and Diffusion of Innovation. The study is based on a survey with 120 respondents, where the focus has been to investigate the relationship between the key concept to gather descriptive statistical data using multiple choice questions. It is found that individuals preferred including numbers instead of capital letters or special symbols in their passwords. Furthermore, it is also concluded that home computer users value ease of use over protection in the usability-security trade off in password managers. Following these findings, the study suggests that the focus of password managers should lie on usability to gain recognition among users.}},
  author       = {{Björk, Emil and Pieslinger, Pontus}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Password Managers in a Home Computer Environment}},
  year         = {{2020}},
}